Overview
The Health and Aging in Africa: A Longitudinal Study of an INDEPTH Community in South Africa (HAALSI) is aimed to provide data on aging in Sub-Saharan Africa. The study is a collaborative effort among Harvard Center for Population and Development Studies, the University of Witwatersrand in South Africa, and the INDEPTH Network. The HAALSI is designed to provide data on aging that is comparable to the Health and Retirement Study (HRS) and other sister studies and can be used to examine the biological, social, and economic determinants of health and life expectancy in the region. The study is funded by the National Institute on Aging (P01 grant) from 2013, which was renewed in 2017 for a five-year period. The second wave was completed in 2019 and the data collection of the third wave will begin in 2021. The baseline survey and biomarker data were collected from adults aged 40 and over from 2014-2015.
Biomarkers
Collected biomarkers are:
- Anthropometry (height, weight, waist and hip circumferences)
- Blood pressure
- Pulse
- Grip strength
- Glucose
- LDL & HDL & Total Cholesterol
- Hemoglobin
- Triglycerides