Overview

• Europe’s shift is especially advanced, with 22% of EU residents over 65 in 2024 and about 6% aged 80 or older, up sharply since 2003.
• Life expectancy has risen by about 25 years since the mid‑20th century and already tops 75 years in half of countries, reshaping how societies organize care and support.
• WHO figures show a persistent gender gap in longevity, reinforcing a feminization of aging that heightens risks of loneliness, chronic illness and poverty for older women.
• Experts warn that immunosenescence weakens defenses in later life and urge stronger adult immunization and timely boosters to protect older adults.
• Barcelona groups have called a 1 October noon rally in Plaça de Sant Jaume under the banner “For a society free of ageism,” with a public reading of an anti‑ageism manifesto.