Economist Malleret recently stated that the unprecedented way the world is aging is, “the single greatest problem of the 21st century.” Here he analyzes how Japan may be the case study to watch: with a quarter of the population over 65 and with one in 17 Japanese people expected to suffer from dementia within the next decade. The nation is (and will be) a prime example of how the costs of aging transform economies, and how we must create populations that are both old AND well.
Must-Reads from the Wellness World (Week of December 14, 2015)
“The mid-life crisis is real: People in their 40s are officially more depressed” – Quartz, Nov. 23, 2015
The issue as to whether, and when, the mid-life crisis occurs is hotly debated within the academic community. According to this short article, new research shows that the mid-life crisis is real: happiness starts falling from early adulthood, hitting a low at the ages of 40-42, before rising up again towards the age of 70.
Global Wellness Summit Identifies Top Ten Shifts in Wellness
The recent Global Wellness Summit in Mexico City was a watershed moment in its 9-year history: never have so many great minds from so many industries (whether traditional medicine, workplace wellness or travel) come together to discuss the future of wellness.
And across the provocative agenda, ten, key, coming shifts emerged: from the fact that governments will make wellness more mandatory; to breakthroughs ahead in epigenetics, stem cells, integrative medicine and health-tracking technology; to the death of workplace wellness “programs” as we’ve known them; to the rise of “imperceptible” wellness.
Workplace Wellness Forecast: You Can Mock Holacracy – But Top-Down Power Hierarchies Will Change
The media delights in mocking companies’ experiments with holacracy, the new “no boss” approach to running businesses that removes the management hierarchy and distributes power across roles. But the experts at a Global Wellness Institute roundtable on “Redefining Workplace Wellness” agreed that the future of work will be less hierarchical, top-down power structures. And this model of more self-responsible employees could have positive implications for companies’ wellness initiatives – which have been plagued by lack of engagement.
Rising Income Inequalities in Wealthy Nations Means Return to “Victorian Era” Early Death, Gout & Malnutrition
The consumer of last resort (the U.S. shopper) is in the doldrums. The combination of (1) disappointing retail sales, (2) stagnation in real wages (with the exception of high-skilled jobs), and (3) loss of momentum in the labour market (with unemployment rates staying at 5.1% only because of a drop in the labour participation rate) suggests that the trend will not reverse any time soon.
Must-Reads from the Wellness World (Week of December 2, 2015)
“Bitwalking Dollars: Digital Currency Pays People to Walk”
– BBC, November 21, 2015
An intriguing idea at the intersection of technology, wellness, finance and retail! With the help of Japanese investors, two entrepreneurs have launched a new digital currency (Bitwalking) that will allow walkers to earn 1 BW$ (or $1) for each 10,000 steps (verified by an app). Their idea is to take advantage of the trend for fitness trackers by offering an additional incentive to keep fit, and to partner with sportswear brands, health services, health insurance firms, environmental groups, and potentially advertisers, who could be offered unique insights into the audiences they are targeting.
