There are now more than 58 million elderly people doing regular sports and fitness exercises in China, says a white paper issued Tuesday by the Information Office of the State Council.

In recent years, China initiated the National Fitness Project, which helps to set up public sports and fitness grounds and facilities, and to provide space for elderly people to do physical exercises.

At present, there are over 30,000 such sports grounds throughout the country, says the white paper titled "The Development of China's Undertakings for the Aged".

Since 2001, China organized the "Millions of Seniors' Fitness Exercise Activities", which have attracted more and more senior participants.

The Chinese government promotes mass sports and fitness exercises among elderly people with an aim to improve their physique and health, says the white paper.

By the end of 2005, the white paper says, all counties and higher administrative units, 70 percent of urban communities and 50 percent of townships in rural areas had established sports associations for seniors, which are strengthening organization work and guidance for the mass sports activities of the aged.

By the end of 2005, the white paper says, over 15,000 community health service centers had been set up in Chinese cities, and urban community health services were available in 95 percent of the cities at or above the prefectural level, and in 86 percent of the districts under municipal jurisdiction and the county-level cities.

"With visiting and taking care of patients at home, daily care and hospice care provided by grassroots medical institutions according to the special needs of the elderly, their health problems can be basically solved within the community," the white paper says.

According to the white paper, the establishment of an urban community health service system has been sped up nationwide, with emphasis on medical and health work for the aged, so as to provide safe, efficient, convenient and economical health services to the elderly.

Starting in 1991, the Chinese government began to include the prevention and treatment of senile diseases in the state scientific and technological plan.

So far, more than 50 institutions in the country are engaged in research to prevent and treat senile diseases, says the white paper.

The "three-level prevention and treatment work" (of heart, brain and blood diseases as well as diabetes and other chronic diseases) is being stressed, and the prevention and treatment guidance and management plan for high blood pressure and diabetes has been formulated and gradually promoted to facilitate the early discovery, diagnosis and treatment of chronic diseases related to old age.

(Xinhua News Agency December 12, 2006)