A large study using data from India’s Longitudinal Ageing Study in India (LASI) examined 31,464 adults aged 60 and above and found that 32.1% had multimorbidity, meaning two or more chronic conditions. The study also found that multimorbidity increased with age.
Another nationally representative LASI-based study found that 24.1% of older adults in India reported multimorbidity. The researchers emphasized the need for disease-prevention programmes and stronger geriatric healthcare services
“बीमारी का इंतज़ार करने से बेहतर है, सेहत की खबर पहले ही ले ली जाए।”
For many people, visiting a doctor means one thing: something is wrong.
A knee starts hurting. Blood pressure suddenly rises. Sugar levels become difficult to control. There is unexplained tiredness. A fall happens. Or a health problem that seemed small suddenly becomes serious.
But healthcare does not always have to begin after something goes wrong.
Sometimes, the most valuable healthcare happens when we feel perfectly fine.
That is the idea behind preventive healthcare—taking regular steps to understand your health, identify potential risks early, and maintain your physical and mental wellbeing before a small concern becomes a bigger problem.
After 60, this becomes particularly important.
Because growing older does not simply mean adding birthdays. The body changes, health risks can accumulate, and several conditions may exist together without producing obvious symptoms in the beginning.
A regular check-up isn’t about finding something to worry about.
It is about finding something early enough to do something about it.
Why Prevention Matters More With Age
As people grow older, the possibility of living with more than one chronic health condition increases.
These numbers don’t mean that every senior will develop multiple diseases.
They tell us something more useful:
As we age, understanding our health becomes increasingly important.
A person may feel perfectly normal while blood pressure is elevated. Blood sugar may gradually change without obvious symptoms. Vision or hearing may decline slowly enough that the person simply adjusts to it. Balance may reduce little by little.
Prevention gives us an opportunity to notice these changes rather than waiting for them to interfere with everyday life.
A Health Check Is More Than Blood Tests
When someone says, “I had my annual check-up,” we often imagine a blood test and a doctor’s consultation.
But healthy aging requires a broader view.
The World Health Organization’s Integrated Care for Older People (ICOPE) approach recommends looking beyond individual diseases and assessing areas such as cognition, mobility, vitality, vision, hearing and psychological wellbeing, along with social support and care needs.
That means a meaningful health review for an older adult can involve more than checking cholesterol or blood sugar.
How well are they walking?
Have they fallen recently?
Are they hearing conversations properly?
Has their vision changed?
Are they eating adequately?
Are they sleeping well?
Are they experiencing memory or mood changes?
Are they still able to perform everyday activities independently?
These questions can sometimes tell a healthcare professional as much about a person’s wellbeing as a laboratory report.
Don’t Forget Vision and Hearing
There are some health changes that seniors gradually learn to live with.
The newspaper becomes harder to read.
The television volume becomes louder.
Family members need to repeat themselves.
Stairs feel slightly more difficult.
Faces become harder to recognise from a distance.
Because these changes can happen gradually, people sometimes assume they are simply “part of getting old.”
But changes in vision and hearing deserve attention.
WHO’s ICOPE framework specifically includes vision and hearing among the intrinsic capacities that can decline in older age and should be assessed as part of person-centred care.
Good preventive healthcare therefore isn’t only about preventing disease.
It is also about protecting the abilities that allow someone to remain connected to everyday life.
Being able to hear a grandchild clearly.
Read a favourite book.
Walk outside confidently.
Recognise a familiar face.
Enjoy a family conversation.
These may sound like small things.
For a senior, they can be a big part of independence.
Falls Can Be a Warning, Not Just an Accident
A fall is often treated as an isolated incident.
“बस पैर फिसल गया था.”
But repeated falls, balance difficulties, or increasing fear while walking deserve attention.
WHO’s approach to healthy aging includes mobility and functional ability because maintaining these abilities is central to independence.
Preventive care can therefore include discussing previous falls, medications, vision, footwear, physical activity, balance and the safety of the home environment with a healthcare professional.
The goal isn’t to make seniors afraid of falling.
It is to help them remain confident while moving through everyday life.
Medicines Need Reviewing Too
Many seniors take more than one medicine.
Some medications may have been prescribed years ago. Others may have been added more recently as health needs changed.
Over time, keeping track of everything can become difficult.
This is why medication reviews can be an important part of preventive care.
A doctor or qualified healthcare professional can review what medicines are being taken, why they are being taken, and whether there are concerns about interactions, side effects or duplication.
Seniors should not stop or change prescribed medicines on their own.
Instead, keeping an updated list of medicines and discussing it during healthcare visits can make conversations with doctors much easier.
Sometimes prevention is simply making sure that the right information is in the right hands.
Prevention Includes Mental and Emotional Health
A health check should not stop at the body.
Retirement, changing family roles, loneliness, loss of friends, reduced mobility or major lifestyle changes can affect emotional wellbeing.
WHO’s ICOPE approach includes psychological capacity and social support alongside physical health as part of comprehensive care for older people.
That means asking:
How have you been feeling?
Are you enjoying your routine?
Do you feel connected to people around you?
Have you lost interest in things you previously enjoyed?
These questions don’t make a person weak.
They make healthcare more complete.
India’s Healthcare System Is Moving Toward Preventive Elder Care
Preventive elder care isn’t just an idea for private hospitals or wellness companies.
The Government of India’s National Programme for Health Care of the Elderly (NPHCE) specifically includes promotional, preventive, curative and rehabilitative services for older adults. Its programme structure includes health promotion, preventive services, diagnosis and management of geriatric problems, rehabilitation and home-based care where needed.
The programme also promotes community-based primary healthcare and regular monitoring of older adults.
This is important because healthcare should not begin only when someone reaches a hospital.
Ideally, it should accompany people throughout their lives.
It is the care we choose before it does.
CARE TODAY.
CONFIDENCE TOMORROW.
References & Research Used
- Government of India — National Programme for Health Care of the Elderly (NPHCE): preventive, promotive, curative and rehabilitative services for older adults.
- WHO — Integrated Care for Older People (ICOPE), 2nd edition, 2025: person-centred assessment covering cognition, mobility, vitality, vision, hearing, psychological capacity and social support.
- Government of India — National Programme for Prevention and Control of NCDs: population-based screening for hypertension, diabetes and several common cancers beginning at age 30, with referral and follow-up.
- LASI-based Indian study — BMC Geriatrics: 31,464 adults aged 60+; 32.1% had multimorbidity, with prevalence increasing with age.
- LASI-based Indian study — BMJ Open: 31,373 adults aged 60+; 24.1% reported multimorbidity, supporting the need for stronger disease-prevention and geriatric-health programmes.
- WHO & AIIMS New Delhi, 2026: WHO highlighted the AIIMS Department of Geriatric Medicine’s work implementing ICOPE in India, including screening thousands of older adults across intrinsic-capacity domains.