The Honourable Jane Philpott, Minister of Health, today announced that the Government of Canada is providing a total of $1.7 million to support 25 projects to be carried out by researchers across the country to use and analyze baseline data from the Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging (CLSA) to answer important health questions.

The CLSA is a national research platform that focuses on health and aging. The platform allows researchers to answer critical questions on the biological, medical, psychological, social, lifestyle and economic aspects of aging, disability and disease. Launched in 2010, the CLSA is led by principal investigator Parminder Raina, a professor at McMaster University. Susan Kirkland of Dalhousie University and Christina Wolfson of McGill University are co-principal investigators.

Examples of funded projects include:

• Dr. Andrew Wister at Simon Fraser University will identify factors that promote resilience in older Canadians living with more than one chronic health condition.
• Dr. Arne Stinchcombe at the University of Ottawa will examine the role of support and care networks in moderating health inequalities among lesbian, gay, and bisexual older Canadians.
• Dr. Brenda Vrkljan at McMaster University will study the relationship between personal and environmental factors influencing driving mobility and social participation among older Canadians.
• Dr. Christina Wolfson at McGill University will produce a snapshot of the physical and mental health status of older Canadian veterans.

“The Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging is thankful to the Government of Canada for its ongoing support of research that will improve the health of Canadians,” said Dr. Raina, who holds the Canada Research Chair in Geroscience.

“The CLSA research platform has been created as a rich resource of data available to all Canadian health researchers. We are thankful for the commitment and contributions of our participants, as well as for the enterprise of researchers who will analyze the CLSA data and generate new knowledge on the factors that contribute to healthy aging.”

The CLSA is collecting data from more than 50,000 participants across Canada over 20 years to better understand the underpinnings of healthy aging. The initial baseline data set is now ready and available for use by researchers and trainees working in all areas of health and psychosocial well-being. For information about data access, visit here.

The CLSA is a major strategic initiative of the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR). CIHR has invested a total of $65.1 million in the CLSA. An additional $26.5 million has been invested by the Canada Foundation for Innovation, provincial governments, universities and other partners.