Have you ever received a phone call or been invited to answer questions about your health, memory, habits, or social life, and thought, “Is this really worth my time?”

If you’re between the ages of about 50 and 85, chances are you’ve been invited to take part in one of the most thoughtful research projects ever launched in Canada. It’s called the Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging, or CLSA. And whether you’ve signed up or just heard of it in passing, the findings from this study are shaping how we age, how we’re cared for, how we remain connected, and how we’re valued.

And yes, I speak from personal experience. I’ve participated in the CLSA since it first started in 2010. Just this week, I completed another home-based interview. It was about two hours long and felt more like a caring conversation than a checklist. In the coming weeks, I’ll be visiting the Simon Fraser University site for my on-site assessment. I’m anticipating (among others) the typical mobility tests, the memory questions, cognitive functioning, lung capacity, and of course, the ever-humbling grip strength test. Wish me luck.

But beyond the personal details, I want to share with you what this study is all about and what we’re already learning. Because while the CLSA may feel like it lives in labs and research centres, it’s really about us.  It’s about our lives.  It’s about our health, our quality of life, and our stories.

What is the CLSA?
The Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging is following over 51,000 Canadians, aged 45 to 85 at the start, for at least 20 years. The goal is to learn what helps people age well. Not just in terms of avoiding illness, but also staying mobile, mentally sharp, emotionally balanced, socially connected, and financially secure. (https://www.clsa-elcv.ca/)

Participants are followed over time. Some complete phone interviews, while others, like myself, take part every three years in home visits and health assessments at research sites across the country.

What’s involved?
The home interview included questions about:

• My living situation and household
• Social connections and how often I see family or friends, how we engage, and what interferes with our ability to engage
• Eating habits, physical activity, and sleep
• Medical history and current health concerns
• Emotional well-being, including stress, finances, and loneliness
• Technology use, transportation, and so much more

It was surprisingly enjoyable, a little like being asked about the chapters of your life. The researchers are prepared, professional, respectful and engaging.

The onsite visit adds more detailed testing. Here is a sample of what this includes:

• Balance and mobility assessments
• Vision and hearing tests
• Bone density scans and body composition
• Memory and cognitive testing
• Blood and urine samples

All of this paints a picture of how aging happens.  Not just what goes wrong, but what helps things go right.

So, what have we learned so far?
Quite a lot, actually. Here’s a peek into what researchers are already finding from the CLSA (https://www.clsa-elcv.ca/category/webinars/:

• Mobility is shaped by more than just age. Your income, education level, and even the layout of your home can affect how you move and function as you age.
• Arthritis increases nutritional risk. Older adults with arthritis often struggle with food procurement and meal prep, pain and fatigue, reduced appetite or medication effects, contributing toward the risk of poor diet quality, malnutrition, and food insecurity.
• Cognitive health and body size are linked. Both underweight and overweight individuals had lower memory scores. It’s not about being thin. It’s about being balanced.
• Personality traits can reduce your fall risk. How we think, feel and act, as well as the degree to which these elements change over time, can increase/decrease our risk of falls, pointing to the need for personalized strategies.
• Hearing loss has genetic links. While genetics can play a role in hearing loss. early attention to protecting our hearing can help reduce other related risks like isolation and cognitive decline.
• Staying socially connected matters. The greater the integration of a varied and stronger social network, the less the nutritional risk, an increase in the consumption of healthy food groups and ultimately, better cognitive functioning.These aren’t abstract stats. They’re based on the real-life experiences of people like you and me. And they remind us that how we age is influenced by much more than genetics. It’s about our communities, our resources, our choices, and our support systems.

Why it matters
It’s easy to feel like our stories fade as we get older, but this research is helping to turn that around. When our voices are heard, our experiences become part of something bigger. They shape the future. They help younger generations prepare. And they remind us that we still have a lot to give.

Warmly,
Rhonda Latreille, MBA, CPCA
Founder & CEO, Age-Friendly Business®

p.s. Since 2003, Age-Friendly Business® has trained thousands of professionals and businesses committed to learning how to raise the quality of the client, customer, and community experience. They are called Certified Professional Consultants on Aging (CPCAs)® and Age-Friendly Businesses®. They have earned the right to ask for your business.

Body
Your Story Has Weight — Physically and Emotionally

One of the quiet gifts of the CLSA is how it shows the ripple effect of everyday life. What we eat, how we sleep, who we spend time with, and how we feel emotionally all matter.

Here’s what we’re learning from the physical and emotional health data:

• Strength and balance are tied to independence. If you can get up from a chair without using your hands, that says something about your health.
• Vision and hearing influence how we connect. When those senses decline, it affects everything from conversation to confidence.
• Loneliness doesn’t just hurt your heart — it affects your health, too.
• Cognitive and emotional wellness go hand in hand. Memory, attention, and focus can all be shaped by how safe and supported we feel in our lives.

What’s good for our bodies often turns out to be good for our spirits. And it works both ways.

Spirit

“We don’t stop playing because we grow old. We grow old because we stop playing.”
— George Bernard Shaw