There’s much to celebrate about Singaporeans living longer than ever. During a quiet, reflective moment, however, I found myself asking: are we truly living better or just living longer? What do those extra years really look like and how are we spending them? It made me think less about how long I live and more about prolonging my healthy, purposeful and independent years – a concept sometimes described as “adding years to life while adding life to years”.
Are we really living better?
Two months ago, I was on a three-week Mediterranean holiday and loving every minute of it. Well, almost. Navigating the steep climbs and descents quickly became the least enjoyable part of each day. Still, I pressed on because I knew what lay ahead: a cafe overlooking the sea, a market brimming with fresh produce and quaint shops selling keepsakes that were perfect for loved ones back home.
Aching legs aside, what struck me wasn’t just the beauty of the experience; it was the older locals who breezed past me on those slopes, seemingly unfazed. Their agility comes from a lifestyle that embraces movement and activity and a diet that emphasises vegetables, fruits, legumes, nuts and whole grains – a commitment to staying well.
It got me thinking about my own life back in Singapore. Maybe I should be taking the stairs more often. Maybe I could walk 25 minutes to and from the supermarket instead of hopping into a car.
Because here’s what I recently learnt while working on Singlife’s white paper on long-term care in Singapore: Singaporeans are living longer than ever – but we’re not living better.
The truth about our “extra” years
In 2017, Singaporeans had an average life expectancy of 84.8 years. But only 74.2 of those years were lived in good health. That means we’re spending over a decade – 10.6 years to be precise – in poor health, often dependent on others to help us with daily tasks. In 1990, the figure was only 9.1 years, but our lifespans were also shorter. The more significant statistic for me is this: the proportion of our lives spent in good health has slightly declined, from 88.0% in 1990 to 87.5% in 2017.1
As life expectancy continues to rise, so does the concern that our healthspan – the number healthy, active, disease-free years in a person’s life – will become shorter and shorter. The widening gap between life expectancy and healthspan isn’t unique to Singapore; other economically advanced countries are facing the same challenge. According to a Mayo Clinic publication released in 2024, Americans now spend an average of 12.4 years living with disability and illness, up from 10.9 years in 2000.2
Of course, this is just an average figure; some people may have longer or shorter healthspans.
Singapore’s Health Ministry has also projected that one in two healthy individuals aged 65 and above will become severely disabled,3 meaning more Singaporeans will need long-term care – defined as help with at least three of the six activities of daily living (ADLs), like bathing, dressing or feeding – as our society ages.
It’s a curious twist: could more birthdays mean more years spent in poor health?
Why we’re having fewer healthy years
The biggest contributors for lost healthy years leading to disability and dependency are not obscure conditions but those we frequently hear about:
- Stroke: Can cause lasting brain damage, paralysis and speech impairment, and doesn’t just affect the elderly. In fact, one in four stroke patients is under the age of 60.4
- Cancer: The disease itself and its treatment can leave people bedridden, unable to move, feed themselves or even use the bathroom without assistance. One in four people in Singapore may develop cancer in their lifetime.5
- Neurological conditions: Conditions like dementia and Parkinson’s disease affect not just the mind but the body. They are progressive and irreversible – and often last for years. One in 11 people aged 60 and above may have dementia.6
According to new data cited in Singlife’s white paper on long-term care, the top reasons for long-term care claims payouts between 2010 and 2024 were:
- Stroke: 50% of claims
- Cancer: 17% of claims
- Parkinson’s disease, Dementia, Alzheimer’s disease: 14% of claims
The data also revealed that half of Singlife’s long-term care insurance claimants needed care for more than 10 years. That’s 10 years of needing help with basic daily living activities, 10 years of lost independence, and often, 10 years of family caregivers burning out emotionally and physically.
Long-term care is a distant concern for many
Despite these statistics and growing awareness of long-term care in society, many Singaporeans still think long-term care “won’t happen to me”. Singlife’s 2024 Long Term Care Survey revealed that over a third of Singaporeans think they are too healthy to ever need it, and a quarter of those surveyed believe they will never become severely disabled.
Meanwhile, a separate Singlife survey on Dementia Care found that while seven out of 10 Singaporeans are familiar with dementia, a third do not see the link between dementia and disability. In reality, however, 90% of people with dementia need help with one ADL and live with a disability.
Is this a sign of our reluctance to imagine a future where we or our loved ones might one day need help with basic daily tasks? Perhaps it's this very discomfort that causes hesitation and, ultimately, missed opportunities to plan proactively for long-term care.
However, readiness makes all the difference when life takes an unexpected turn. And if disability does develop, timing is everything. That’s where rehabilitation plays a critical role.
The power of appropriate care in the event of disability
At a health seminar I once attended, a stroke survivor shared how early, consistent rehabilitation, backed by determination and family support, helped him regain mobility and his ability to speak after losing both following a stroke in his mid-50s. That story stayed with me. It underscored a truth that applies not just to stroke, but to conditions like cancer and dementia: appropriate care, when started early, can mean the difference between recovery and decline.
Yet, as Lee Poh Wah, CEO of the Lien Foundation, points out in Singlife’s white paper, people tend to choose short-term convenience over long-term outcomes. Using stroke recovery as an example, he says, “There’s this golden period after a stroke where intensive rehabilitation can make a huge difference in someone’s recovery. However, many take the convenient option of enrolling the stroke patient for nursing home care and forgoing rehabilitation. While the upfront cost is higher with rehabilitation, skipping it can lead to bigger societal costs down the line.”
Healthcare experts have also pointed out the underutilisation of physiotherapy and rehabilitation, calling for greater understanding of their benefits. Rehabilitation can not only help preserve physical abilities; it restores independence and helps maintain social and emotional wellbeing. These are all crucial elements for ageing well, and become even more important when disability comes into the picture.
Shifting the focus from longevity to quality years
As I edge into midlife, I’m not just hoping for more years in life – I want a longer healthy lifespan and more good years. So, I’m determined to reduce the 10.6-year gap between life expectancy and health expectancy. I want my final decade, those precious 4,000 days, to be fulfilling ones. And if I should need long-term care, I want to be able to afford the care I need so that I won’t burden others.
Here’s how I’m rewriting the longer life, shorter healthspan script:
- Building everyday activity into my life: Stairs instead of escalators. Walks instead of rides. They sound small but these tweaks add up. Just like the Mediterranean seniors I met, movement is medicine.
- Staying curious about health: Whether it’s taking an active interest in community health news, signing up for a SkillsFuture course on healthy ageing or just chatting with my doctor about cognitive screening, I’m choosing awareness over avoidance.
- Refusing to accept frailty as “unavoidable”: I reject the common misconception that ageing equals decline, and encourage seniors with low mobility to challenge it too – age does not mean improvement is impossible. That mindset is what holds us back from investing in our own resilience. Dr Zhao Yi Jing, a neurologist at Mount Elizabeth Hospital, says, “Individuals should engage in physical activity as much as their joints permit and for as long as they can. Ageing well means staying physically active, socially connected and mentally engaged.” This also means actively seeking physiotherapy and rehabilitation services, which are often underutilised.
- Planning for the cost of care: Singlife’s white paper on long-term care shows that long-term care costs an average of S$2,952 per month. That's more than half the 2024 national average income of S$5,500.7 I was surprised by that figure, and I’m not alone. The paper also revealed that 57% of Singaporeans underestimate the true cost of care, which suggests that many would not be ready for the full financial impact of long-term care. While the government’s long-term care insurance provides basic financial support, individuals have to cover any costs exceeding this. To be better prepared, I’m reviewing my CareShield Life supplement coverage. I want to ensure that when it's combined with the basic payouts under the national long-term care insurance scheme, I’ll have sufficient support for the rehabilitation and care needed to preserve my independence, dignity and comfort for as long as possible, whatever my condition.
Towards a longer life and longer healthspan
We often commemorate our longevity as a national achievement but having more years to live should also mean more meaningful, fulfilling years. Longer lifespans shouldn’t be about spending more of our later years in pain, dependency and diminished dignity.
I think we should stop asking how long we’ll live and start asking how well we can live instead. Sure, we can’t control everything about the future, but we can ensure that we make the best of whatever is in store now, by taking small, intentional steps to protect our health, independence and sense of purpose.
If we can shape our retirement plans, our homes and, indeed, our holidays, we can certainly shape our healthspan, too.
Learn how to better prepare for long-term care challenges as Singapore ages in Singlife's white paper, From Awareness to Action: Securing Long-Term Care for a Super-Aged Society.
Notes
This advertisement has not been reviewed by the Monetary Authority of Singapore.
1. Source: Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation & Ministry of Health, “The burden of disease in Singapore, 1990-2017”, published on 2 April 2019.
2. Source: Mayo Clinic, “The global divide between longer life and good health”, published on 11 December 2024.
3. Source: Central Provident Fund Board, “Overview of CareShield Life”, accessed on 17 July 2025.
4. Source: HealthXchange, “4 fast facts about stroke”, accessed on 17 July 2025.
5. Source: Singapore Cancer Society, “Common types of cancer in Singapore”, accessed on 17 July 2025.
6. Source: Institute of Mental Health, “Dementia”, accessed on 17 July 2025.
7. Source: Ministry of Manpower, Research and Statistics Department, “Summary table: Income”, accessed on 17 July 2025.
