More than 100 participants of the tenth national Emerging Researchers in Ageing (ERA) conference gained insights into the latest dementia research trials being conducted by distinguished Psychiatry Scientia Professor, Dr Henry Brodaty AO.
Professor Brodaty, of the University of New South Wales, was a keynote speaker at the ERA conference, hosted by the ARC Centre of Excellence in Population Ageing Research (CEPAR), held today at the UNSW Kensington campus.
In his role as Director of the Dementia Collaborative Research Centre at UNSW, Professor Brodaty is involved in several studies aimed at discovering causes of and preventable factors in cognitive decline and dementia. The largest of these, the Sydney Memory and Ageing Study (MAS), involves more than 1000 people from eastern Sydney who were aged 70-90 when they were recruited from the Electoral Roll six years ago. He led a team that recently developed and launched a new online dementia screening tool for GPs known as the GPCOG, which is available on the web in 11 languages.
Professor Brodaty presented evidence of the benefits of physical and mental activity on maintaining cognitive function and delaying the onset of dementia. There is also evidence for the benefit of diet and avoiding or treating obesity, hypertension, type 2 diabetes and depression.
'Neurodegenerative diseases are destined to be the main driver of health burden and disability in the 21st century. With numbers of people with dementia in Australia set to quadruple over the next 40 years, the impact on society and the economy will be huge. There is a great need, and many opportunities, for researchers to work in the dementia field,' Professor Brodaty said.
The implications of population ageing on the Australian workforce was another major theme of the conference. Professor Peter McDonald, CEPAR Deputy Director and leading national demographer based at the Australian National University, told delegates that as a result of population ageing, future growth of the labour force is dependent on immigration.
'Population ageing is a significant challenge facing the Australian labour force. The only way we are currently structured to meet the growing demand for both skilled and unskilled labour is through immigration. Australia's immigration policy will have to remain flexible to meet the labour market needs,' Professor McDonald said.
The two keynote speakers were joined by more than 40 up-and-coming researchers in the field of population ageing. ERA is the only national conference showcasing the research of postgraduate students in population ageing. It was also an opportunity for participants to connect with CEPAR, a major new multi-disciplinary research centre, and to network with their peers, academics and policy-makers.