Dissertation, 16 April 2021: Ying Shang

On 16th of April, Ying Shang at Karolinska Institutet, defended her doctoral thesis entitled: “How can older adults combat diabetes to achieve a longer and healthier life?”.

The objective of the thesis was to investigate the impact of prediabetes and diabetes on health and survival among older adults, and to identify modifiable factors that may attenuate the risk of diabetes on disability and mortality to prolong survival with independence. Data used in this project were derived from the ongoing population-based Swedish National study on Aging and Care in Kungsholmen (SNAC-K). Overall, diabetes could increase the risk of dementia secondary to stroke and accelerate decline in physical function. This decline in physical function might start already during prediabetes. Yet, one out of five older adults with prediabetes could revert to normoglycemia with lifestyle modifications such as weight management. Diabetes is related to the risk of disability or death among older adults, but a healthy and socially active lifestyle may attenuate this risk and prolong disability-free survival.

Photo of Ying Shang by Maria Yohuang

More activities

November 26, 2025

Join us: Upcoming symposium on non-response – 26 November

Don’t miss the opportunity to join us for the upcoming seminar: Tackling and overcoming non-response in cohort and survey studies – a national symposium for researchers and stakeholders”, which is jointly arranged by the research infrastructures NEAR (National E-infrastructure for Aging Research) and REWHARD (Relations, Work and Health across the life-course – A Research Data […]

June 11, 2025

Meet Debora Rizzuto, New Director of NEAR

Effective May 2025, Debora Rizzuto took over the Directorship following Laura Fratiglioni. In addition to being an Associate Professor in Geriatric Epidemiology at Karolinska Institutet (KI), Debora has also been the Vice Director and Scientific Coordinator of NEAR since 2018. New NEAR Director, Debora Rizzuto. Photo: Stefan Zimmerman. Hello Debora, and congratulations on your new […]

May 27, 2025

Every Day Counts: National Dementia Strategy 2025–2028

Dementia is one of the major public health challenges, and the number of people living with a diagnosis of dementia is increasing, posing significant challenges for health and social care. At the same time, research in the field is progressing. Today, it is possible to diagnose dementia earlier in the course of the disease, and […]

April 16, 2021