AGEING

The global population is ageing rapidly. The growing numbers of elderly people challenge our societal structures, not least the health sector, which is why authorities in most countries encourage elderly to lead active and healthy life styles. But to equate active ageing strictly with health is too narrow a focus. New research from University of Copenhagen shows that elderly can reap social and health benefits from activities that do not necessarily conform to official life style recommendations – billiards for instance.

Billiards and beer can also be active ageing.

One of the everyday activities Aske Juul Lassen observed was billiards: In one of the activity centers for the elderly, in which he conducted field work, 10-15 men between the ages of 70 and 95 meet to play billiards four times a week.According to Aske Juul Lassen, one of the positive side effects of the activities at the activity centers for the elderly is that the activities take their minds off illness; they do not focus as much on their ailments when they are engaged in billiards or some of the other activities that the centers have on off

http://news.ku.dk/all_news/2014/10/active_ageing_is_much_more_than_exercise/

25. "Active ageing is much more than exercise," (University of Copenhagen
via Eurekalert [American Association for the Advancement of Science],
October 8, 2014).