Seniors gathered at Victoria Park yesterday afternoon to enjoy the Department of Health’s fifth annual Celebrating Wellness event.

This year’s event was themed Healthy Lifestyles, Healthy Ageing.

Around 30 organisations were present promoting goods and services to Bermuda’s ageing population.

These included the Department of Health’s senior services, Action on Alzheimers and Dementia, Bermuda Red Cross and the Bermuda Police Service. There was music in the park as well as a selection of healthy foods being served.

Jeanne Atherden, the Minister of Health, was present to give a speech promoting health and wellness.

She said: “Promoting healthy and active ageing and building systems to meet the needs of older adults will be central to fostering healthy ageing in every country.

“The increase in longevity, especially in high income countries, has largely been due to the decline in deaths from cardiovascular disease, stroke and heart disease, mainly because of simple cost-effective strategies to reduce tobacco use and high blood pressure and improved coverage and effectiveness of health interventions.

“However, although people are living longer they are not necessarily healthier than before. Nearly a quarter of the overall global burden of death and illness is in people aged over 65. Much of this burden is attributable to long-term illnesses caused by diseases such as cancer, chronic respiratory diseases, heart disease, muscular skeletal diseases and mental and neurological disorders. Adapting to the many challenges that come with ageing can be a challenge.

“But looking after our bodies is an important part of healthy ageing. By engaging in healthy lifestyle practices such as having a healthy diet, exercising daily and not smoking will not prevent changes that are part of normal ageing but can reduce the chances of heart disease, certain cancers, obesity, diabetes, high blood pressure, dementia, arthritis and other diseases associated with old age.”