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UN Says Trend Towards Older World Irreversible VOA News 28 Feb 2002 08:43 UTC 
A United Nations report released Thursday says population aging around the world is unprecedented and largely irreversible.
A study by the U.N. Population Division estimates that currently one of every 10 people is 60 years old, or older, and that by 2050 the ratio will be one in five.
The report projects in the next fifty years the number of people 100 years old, or older, will increase from 210,000 at present to more than three million.
The report says the young populations of the past are unlikely to occur again.
The study also warns that since the pace of population aging is faster in developing countries, those countries will have less time to adjust to the consequences than more developed nations.
Some information for this report provided by AP and AFP.
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