A French-language version of the popular McMaster Optimal Aging Portal has been launched at https://www.mcmastervieillissementoptimal.org/.

The highly acclaimed McMaster Optimal Aging Portal was begun in 2014 as a unique online health resource that supports the healthy aging goals of Canada’s growing senior population.

“We’ve seen great success with the McMaster Optimal Aging Portal thus far, including an expanding global audience as well as powerful endorsements from government officials and healthcare professionals who are encouraging older adults and their caregivers to visit this useful resource,” said Parminder Raina, scientific director of the McMaster Institute for Research on Aging. “We are proud to bring this invaluable health content to Francophone audiences in Canada and beyond.”

Ontario Minister of Seniors Affairs Dipika Damerla added: “The French-language version of the Optimal Aging Portal is an invaluable health resource for Francophones in Ontario and across the country. Congratulations to McMaster University for your thought leadership in connecting aging research with the critical health concerns of Canadian seniors.”

The Portal is different from other health-related websites as it has an emphasis on providing the best available research evidence in a relatable way, so visitors can make informed health decisions and important lifestyle changes that influence optimal aging.

The Portal content includes Blog Posts, which are short articles written by trusted experts to support healthy aging; Web Resource Ratings, which evaluate free online health resources based on a five-star rating scale; and Evidence Summaries which summarize – in plain language – the key messages from recent high-quality scientific evidence. The Portal also features a weekly ‘Hitting the Headlines’ column that connects aging news headlines with related research evidence.

Three world-class McMaster research databases and consultations with aging experts from across the country inform all of the Portal’s health content. In 2017, the Portal will be expanding the topic coverage beyond health considerations to include additional evidence-based content about the social aspects of aging.

‘With the continual growth in the number of older adults in Canada, one of our most pressing health and social policy issues is the support and care of our aging population,” said Raina. “Our goal with the Portal is to reach as many people as possible.”

Elizabeth Allard, President of the Ontario Federation of Francophone Seniors and Retirees (known as Fédération des aînés et des retraités francophones de l’Ontario (FARFO) in French) added: “We congratulate and thank McMaster University for its research on optimal aging and for creating a Portal on this theme. The French version of the Portal is appreciated two-fold, as Francophones will be able to make informed decisions about their health and will also be made aware of the various social aspects of aging.”

Raina said the Portal team would like to thank the Quebec Network for Research on Aging, a thematic Network funded by the Fonds de Recherche du Québec –Santé for French translation support, as well as the CHUM (Centre Hospitalier de l’Université de Montréal) where the network’s director, Pierette Gaudreau is based.