FACTORS ASSOCIATED WITH SUCCESSFUL AGING

Objective: To assess the prevalence of successful ageing and the facto rs associated with it. Method: An epidemiological survey was carried o ut with 1,045 persons aged 70+ living in Canberra or Queanbeyan. Succe ssful ageing was defined as living in the community without disability , with excellent or good self-rated health and a high score on a cogni tive screening test. Results: The prevalence of successful ageing decl ined steeply from age 70-74 to age 80+. Men had a higher prevalence th an women. In both men and women, successful ageing was associated with higher verbal intelligence. For women there were, in addition, associ ations with lower neuroticism, not smoking and lower frequency of stre nuous activity earlier in life. Conclusions: While the ageing of the p opulation may lead to a higher prevalence of age-related disease, incr easing intelligence test scores in future cohorts of the elderly may l ead to countervailing positive effects on successful ageing.