By Tony Hicks. Bay City News.
What will happen when more humans start living to be 100 years old?
The social, political, and health-related impacts of a population with increasing life expectancy will be the focus of the third annual Century Summit, hosted by the Stanford Longevity Center on December 13-14.
The conference is a hybrid event, with the public invited to watch virtually alongside the in-person audience.
Experts from a wide variety of backgrounds and disciplines will discuss new ideas about what is called the "span of health" of a life, including how to make the lives of a century healthier, more productive and more equitable.
One concern that needs to be addressed is the question of what drives favorable health outcomes for more people, not just the wealthy and well-educated, but also those with less access to health care and other resources.
"Part of the theory is that the duration of health begins at birth," conference president Ken Stearn said in a statement. "That means investing not just in the formal health care system, but also in preventative health care measures and social support for a wide range of things that support mental health and longevity."
Organizers said the summit will ask "smart, creative and innovative people tough questions around the quest for a longer, healthier life: can we shift the focus to ?health duration? instead of just the duration of life? Can we conceive of longer careers that are more balanced, more productive and more equitable? And can a nation that has fueled so much generational antipathy rethink intergenerational relationships in positive and productive ways?
Speakers will include California's newest Surgeon General, Dr. Diana Ramos, who will be interviewed by Louise Aronson, Professor of Medicine at Stanford and author of "Elderhood: Redefining Aging, Transforming Medicine, Reimagining Life."
Laura Carstensen, director of the Stanford Center on Longevity, will discuss the role of stress and happiness in longevity and health with Bob Waldinger, director of the Harvard Study of Adult Development and executive director of the Lifespan Research Foundation.
Leaders from two of California's largest health care systems will discuss how to rethink health care in the US; Alice Waters will talk about nutrition and how to provide greater access to nutritious food and the new frontiers of brain health will be discussed by UCSF Professor Adam Gazzaley.
The full list of speakers and the full conference agenda can be found at https://www.longevity-project.com/century-summit-2022-event-landing-page.
The Summit of the Century takes place from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. on December 13 and 14 at the Li Ka Shing Center for Learning and Knowledge at 291 Campus Drive, Stanford. To register for in-person or virtual tickets, go to https://hopin.com/events/2022-century-summit.
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