DARMSTADT, Germany,
Sept. 13, 2016 /CNW/ -
- "WE100" movement will promote activities to
prepare society for 100 healthy years across
generations
Merck, a leading science and technology company, revealed the
new purpose "Prepare society for a new era of humans living 100
healthy years" for its Consumer Health business. The purpose will
be brought to life through the movement "WE100®" aimed
at raising awareness of healthy living, all the way from children's
age to 100 years. The WE100 movement with its motto "Young for old.
Old for young." will also coordinate concrete actions to help
prepare society for humans living 100 healthy years.
(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160913/406890 )
The new purpose of the Consumer Health business of Merck has
been presented along with the WE100 movement by Uta Kemmerich-Keil, President and CEO of the
Consumer Health Business, who commented "Our main objective is to
change perceptions of society and take concrete action to
articulate the next steps on our journey toward 100 healthy years.
This initiative is equally aimed at the younger population, which
needs to be educated now about the right approach to healthy
ageing." Kemmerich-Keil added "We decided to launch a new purpose
and WE100 as a neutral movement so that everybody sharing the goal
of preparing society to live 100 healthy years could join,"
Kemmerich-Keil concluded.
The WE100 movement was also recently presented at Cannes
Creativity Festival by Atilla Cansun, Chief Marketing Officer of
the Consumer Health business of Merck, who explained "We believe
age does not influence how much one has to offer. Our first step
will be to eliminate the barriers preventing the older generation
to be fully involved and integrated in society. We want to set the
bar high and we welcome anyone sharing our goal to prepare society
for humans living 100 healthy years to join us as the WE100
movement develops."
As life expectancy continues to increase dramatically across the
world since 1945, surveys show that society is not yet prepared for
the prospect of humans living 100 years.[1] According to
the World Health Organization (WHO), the world's population over 60
years will nearly double from 12% to 22% by 2050.
As a first step of the WE100 movement, the Consumer Health
business of Merck conducted a survey on ageing and the perception
of ageing across society, which showed that 80% of interviewees
think that society needs to dramatically change its perception and
attitude towards ageing. The survey also showed that 95% of
interviewees believe governments are not taking a proactive role in
findings solutions to trigger greater involvement in the society
after retirement. In addition, 80% of those interviewed think they
have lower chances to find jobs at age 50+ versus younger
generations. Finally, when asked whether children are prepared to
live 100 healthy years, 93% of survey respondents say current
education is falling short of providing the necessary information
to prepare children early on to live a long healthy life.
As part of the WE100 movement pilots, activities in schools are
planned in 2017 to help children prepare for healthy ageing.
Finally, as of October 2016, WE100
will start working on establishing partnerships with public and
private organizations around the theme of living 100 healthy years
to involve relevant stakeholders in the movement.
About the Consumer Health business of
Merck
Brands of the Consumer Health business, such as
Neurobion®, Bion®, Nasivin®, Seven
Seas®, Dolo-Neurobion®, and
Femibion® are innovative leaders in key markets, backed
by science and trusted by consumers worldwide. The Consumer Health
business is with over 3,700 employees globally active in over 40
markets. The portfolio comprises of brands with annual total sales
of about $ 1 billion. Consumer Health
is a business of the Healthcare business sector within the Merck
Group with global headquarters in Darmstadt, Germany.
For more information please go to
http://www.merck-consumer-health.com or
https://twitter.com/merck_ch .
1. Omnibus Daily for Merck group Ageing Survey among 2344
participants
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About Merck
Merck is a leading science and technology company in healthcare,
life science and performance materials. Around 50,000 employees
work to further develop technologies that improve and enhance life
- from biopharmaceutical therapies to treat cancer or multiple
sclerosis, cutting-edge systems for scientific research and
production, to liquid crystals for smartphones and LCD televisions.
In 2015, Merck generated sales of € 12.85 billion in 66
countries.
Founded in 1668, Merck is the world's oldest pharmaceutical and
chemical company. The founding family remains the majority owner of
the publicly listed corporate group. Merck, Darmstadt, Germany holds the global rights to the Merck
name and brand. The only exceptions are the United States and Canada, where the company operates as EMD
Serono, MilliporeSigma and EMD Performance Materials.
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)
SOURCE Merck