In September, 2016, Silver Santé researchers took part in a discussion on Contemporary Sciences and Contemplative Science with His Holiness the Dalai Lama. The event, held at the University of Strasbourg, saw His Holiness join live discussions, one of which was about the Silver Santé Study. Project Coordinator Gaël Chételat and tenured research scientist Antoine Lutz, both of INSERM (Institut national de la santé et de la recherché médicale) discussed the objectives of the Silver Santé Study and took part in the discussion about the potential benefits of meditation, physical activity, diet and learning on mental health and well-being in later life.

You can view the discussion by clicking here.

Close to 100 older people from in and around Caen (Normandy), attended our project’s first public conference at the Marie Curie Amphitheatre on June 15.

The event was organised to help spread the word about the Silver Santé Study in the local community and inform people aged 65 and over how they can get involved in our research into healthy ageing.

The Normandy region has experienced one of the fastest growth rates in the numbers of seniors across France, with over 60s representing 25% of the population.

More public events will be held in the local area during the summer, to drive recruitment of volunteers for a clinical study beginning in January 2017.

Interested?  Register here

The two monks!

Our project is very fortunate to have the support and advocacy of two highly respected experts from the fields of health & wellbeing practices and journalism:

Matthieu Ricard (left)

Doctor in cellular genetics, Tibetan Buddhist monk (‘le moine’ in French), actively engaged in scientific research

Jean-Francois Lemoine (literal translation ‘the monk’ – right)

Health journalist , former columnist for the Nouvel Observateur and Europe 1, website creator.

 

Silver Santé Study goes live!

The Silver Santé Study kicked off on May 31 at an official launch event in Caen, Normandy, with an invited audience of key stakeholders from the community including local Mayor and President of Caen le Mer, Joel Bruneau, Alexia Lemoine (Director AD Normandy) and Valerie Egloff (Advisor Normandy Region).

Event host and project coordinator Dr Gaël Chételat (pictured right) gave a presentation about the research, its aims and methodologies.

“Thank you to everyone who attended our event and especially to our partners and stakeholders for their support,” said Gaël.  “It was a fantastic opportunity to raise awareness of our project and to request support from key people within our local community, who can assist us with recruitment of volunteers for our clinical study beginning in January.”

“We also thank our ambassadors for honouring us with their presence and supporting our project.”

 

 

Our project has already received coverage in a French regional newspaper distributed across Caen in Normandy, where we are looking to recruit volunteers for a clinical study beginning early in 2017.

You can read the articles (in French) by clicking below:

article Ouest France1

article Ouest France2

This clip, featuring our coordinators Dr Gael Chételat and Antoine Lutz, is available on Why Doctor here.

To visit the French language website, click here.

Dr Antoine Lutz, who is leading our Work Package on meditation, has been featured in  prominent French magazine Le Point.  

You can read the full article (in French) here

We are all living longer but how can we determine if we are living well?

The Silver Santé Study comprises three clinical studies: one involving patients exhibiting subjective cognitive decline, one with expert meditators and one for members of the local population in Caen, Normandy, from where  the project is coordinated.  This area has faced one of the most rapid increases in the ageing population of all French regions – the number of seniors has risen by 40% in 20 years.

We need volunteers from Caen aged 65 and over!

Dr Gaël Chételat, our project coordinator, says: “This is a fantastic opportunity for our local older community to become involved in important research, which will ultimately help older people themselves and health professionals address the challenge of improving health outcomes for Europe’s ageing population.”

Interested?  Sign up today – in English – en Francais