TWO NEW STUDIES LAUNCH TO SUPPORT HEALTHY AGEING
2026 sees the launch of two clinical studies for the STAGE project. In January, the KORA Digital-Fit intervention study began at Helmholtz Munich in Germany, and in February, the Northern Finland Birth Cohort 1966 (NFBC1966) will start its health monitoring study at the University of Oulu in Finland.
The two studies, although different in their set-up, focus on the prevention of healthy ageing with multi-morbidity (two or more diseases). Technology is at the core of both studies, which will monitor and quantify the impacts of preventative measures on biological ageing, multi-morbidity and wellbeing.
The German study is led by the Institute of Epidemiology at Helmholtz Munich and Liva Healthcare, and recruitment targets up to 5,000 eligible participants in the population-based study KORA.
The evidence-based behaviour change intervention will be conducted using the Liva platform, which incorporates health coaching and an app. The app incorporates features such as goal setting, progress tracking, and educational content, and the programme aims to support people to make and sustain healthier habits. The aim is to assess its effect on body composition, strength and perceived well-being after one year. By measuring the effect of the intervention, we can understand its impact on citizens’ health and characterise ageing trajectories.
The Finnish study is led by Population Studies at the University of Oulu, together with Italian SME Ab.Acus, which targets recruitment from around 7,000 eligible participants in the NFBC1966 birth cohort.
NFBC1966 is launching a major new follow-up, combining decades of biological, social, and environmental data with modern digital health tools to examine how lifelong exposures and the genome shape health and ageing. The STAGE project is an enabler of this follow-up, helping to fund the work, and will conduct an extensive clinical study, continuing with two years of health monitoring via the Ab.Acus app. This will collect data on mobility, cognitive functions, general well-being, and dietary factors among older adults.
IMPACT OF THE STUDIES
The collection of new data in both the KORA and NFBC1966 studies will enable further research on ageing, building on the already extensive collections accessed by researchers worldwide.
The overall impact of both studies is for older people to be empowered to take an active role in managing their lifestyle, physical and mental health via health monitoring and personalised digital solutions. Co-creation, testing and evaluation of tools will ensure a greater probability of feeling empowered and supported.
Understanding the economic and health impacts will help inform policymakers as to the feasibility of introducing these types of interventions and monitoring into routine practice, to support healthy ageing from as early as possible.
MORE INFORMATION
Find out more about the KORA study: https://stage-healthyageing.eu/what-is-the-kora-study
Find out more about the NFBC1966 birth cohort and follow-up: Here
Find out more about Work Package 7 (the technology) and Work Package 8 (the studies).