Future-proofing our people: Advancing a population's health and development
Research in NTU is helping us improve our wellbeing and maximise our learning potential.
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In 2023, the average Singaporean lived to 83 years old, compared to 78 years at the turn of the century. Globally, life expectancy has also risen, from nearly 67 years in 2000 to just above 73 in 2023, according to the United Nations. And it is predicted to exceed 75 soon.
With longer lifespans, it becomes increasingly important to maintain good health and lead meaningful lives that make full use of our skills and potential.
Early intervention in health issues can ease the burden on society by lowering healthcare costs and improving quality of life for individuals.
“A reactive healthcare model, which focuses on treating diseases after symptoms occur, is financially unsustainable and leads to poorer outcomes for patients,” explains Dr Dorrain Low, Senior Research Fellow at NTU’s Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine (LKCMedicine).
“In contrast, preventive healthcare through early risk detection, lifestyle changes and personalised medicine can reduce the incidence of diseases, improve patients’ quality of life and enhance healthcare sustainability,” adds Dr Low, who is also a researcher involved in the Health for Life in Singapore (HELIOS) population study launched by LKCMedicine.
By leveraging technologies such as digital tools and artificial intelligence (AI), NTU researchers are collaborating across disciplines to take a holistic and sustainable approach to addressing three key challenges and considerations in human health and development.
CURBING CLIMATE CHANGE’S IMPACT ON HEALTH
Despite global efforts, climate change remains an existential threat. According to Prof Adam Switzer, a Principal Investigator at NTU’s Earth Observatory of Singapore (EOS), extreme heat subjects humans to secondary effects like heat-related diseases, wildfires that worsen respiratory conditions and drastic changes in weather patterns that facilitate the spread of communicable diseases.
“The secondary effects are huge, but they’re very hard to track and work out. However, that’s what also makes this research a really interesting space to work in,” says Prof Switzer, who is also the Lead Principal Investigator of the Climate Transformation Programme, hosted by EOS and launched by NTU. The seven-year interdisciplinary initiative explores areas ranging from extreme climate events and processes to the broader impact of climate change on financial markets.
Asst Prof Lim Jue Tao from LKCMedicine explains that climate change is driving the spread of infectious diseases globally, especially vector-borne illnesses such as dengue and malaria.
“Warmer temperatures accelerate mosquito development, biting rates and the replication of viruses within mosquitoes,” he explains, adding that the steady rise in reported dengue cases and periodic outbreaks in Southeast Asia may be linked to climate change.
To address this, he develops computational tools that model the impact of climate-related factors – such as extreme heat and rainfall – on the transmission of infectious diseases. These predictive models can be tailored to specific regions, generating high-resolution risk maps to guide the strategic allocation of public health resources.
Meanwhile, Assoc Prof Luo Dahai, also from LKCMedicine, is optimising emerging vaccine technologies such as self-amplifying mRNA vaccines. These could enable rapid, scalable vaccine production that can adapt to evolving pathogens. By understanding how viruses replicate and evade the immune system, his work can help improve the efficiency of vaccine formulations, potentially reducing required doses while ensuring long-lasting immune responses.
Changing climate also affects human psychology, Prof Switzer adds, highlighting the effect of heat stress on people’s behaviour as an example. He says an interdisciplinary approach – one that integrates science, engineering and the humanities – is needed to effectively tackle the complex challenges posed by climate change.
DEVELOPING YOUNG MINDS, STAYING MENTALLY FIT
From tackling and understanding climate change effects, NTU professors are also leveraging AI to spur the growth of human minds and actively build people’s skills and knowledge throughout the course of life.
Asst Prof Wen Yun from the National Institute of Education is tackling the challenge of making learning more engaging by incorporating AI and augmented reality (AR) technologies.
She works closely with teachers, who identify pain points that can be addressed by designing innovative experiences that improve students’ interest to learn, understanding of concepts and ability to learn with others. Her team’s AI- and AR-enhanced learning systems have already been implemented in 14 primary schools across Singapore.
One area of focus is second-language learning, where students often struggle with low motivation and limited exposure in their daily environments. To address this, her team is embedding generative AI within AR environments to support students in developing a detailed narrative or story, as well as to provide both tailored instruction and personalised feedback on writing tasks.
“Children are naturally curious, and we aim to sustain their curiosity through diverse learning experiences enabled by these technologies to boost their confidence and help them better understand their future aspirations,” she says.
At the other end of the age spectrum, age-related neurological conditions such as Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson’s disease can rob the elderly of their mental capabilities. At the Dementia Research Centre Singapore (DRCS), researchers are working to diagnose and intervene in the pre-dementia phase, when symptoms of mild cognitive impairment such as forgetfulness first appear.
Although dementia typically affects older adults, its early signs can emerge 10 to 20 years before diagnosis, even among middle-aged people. Early intervention at this stage can help prevent dementia and reduce the burden on healthcare systems, especially since nearly one in five Singaporeans who have mild cognitive impairment are at risk of developing dementia, explains LKCMedicine’s Assoc Prof Nagaendran Kandiah, Director of DRCS.
PREVENTIVE HEALTHCARE AND PERSONALISED MEDICINE FOR EVERYONE
By making physical activity more engaging, interactive games can also encourage senior citizens to exercise, which improves their physical health.
Prof Theng Yin Leng, Executive Director of the Ageing Research Institute for Society and Education at NTU, has translated her research in this area into tangible community impact through the International-Singapore Intergenerational National Games (I-SING).
Originally launched as a local programme to encourage intergenerational bonding and promote active lifestyles among the elderly through interactive fitness games, I-SING went international in 2018, with participants from Finland, France, Japan, Taiwan and Singapore.
Having I-SING participants across ages also reflects a shift in healthcare from being reactive to preventive, with an emphasis on population health.
“We are moving from care for the aged to care for the population,” says Prof Theng, who is from NTU’s Wee Kim Wee School of Communication and Information. She explains that addressing Singapore’s ageing challenges requires a life course perspective that includes younger generations, as many health conditions begin earlier in life.
Beyond prevention, precision medicine is gaining ground, especially as many diseases manifest differently in Asian and Western populations, due to differences in inherited risk factors and patterns of disease progression. A more targeted, population-specific approach is essential to improve outcomes.
Such observations have spurred the HELIOS study, led by Prof John Chambers from LKCMedicine who is also Chief Scientific Officer of Singapore’s National Precision Medicine Programme. The study aims to improve early prediction, diagnosis and treatment of chronic diseases common in Singapore’s ageing population. So far, it has mapped the genomes of over 50,000 Singaporeans and permanent residents of different ethnicities, aged 30 to 84.
Dr Low explains that the HELIOS study “is a powerful resource for identifying early disease biomarkers and strategies for preventive treatment personalised to individual patients”. This is possible as the study pieces together how various elements collectively play a role in a person’s health: genetics, metabolites (small molecules produced during metabolism), diet, lifestyle, environment and clinical factors.
Measuring blood metabolite levels, for example, can reveal what individuals eat and how they respond differently to specific foods, across Asian ethnic groups. This has led to the identification of potentially novel dietary biomarkers linked to health conditions like diabetes, offering more precise nutritional assessment and personalised strategy for disease prevention.
AI: A MULTIPLYING FORCE IN HEALTHCARE
As Singapore’s population ages, addressing public health needs will also require a robust healthcare workforce. Yet, manpower shortages are a pressing concern. One of the major issues is the lack of healthcare workers, explains Prof Joseph Sung, NTU’s Senior Vice President (Health and Life Sciences) and Dean of LKCMedicine. And the gap will only widen as our population continues to age, he adds.
To alleviate this labour crunch, AI is being explored as a transformative tool, says Prof Sung, who is also Co-Director of the Centre of AI in Medicine at LKCMedicine. AI can, for instance, assist healthcare providers in doing mundane tasks like helping doctors make faster diagnoses of respiratory diseases from chest X-rays.
However, he cautions that for AI to be successfully implemented in healthcare, several concerns must be addressed. These include data privacy and equitable access to healthcare due to the high cost of technology adoption.
“For a technology to be applied in healthcare, many studies need to be done,” he adds. “We must ensure that it benefits rather than harms patients, and prove it is cost effective. Doctors and nurses also need to trust the technology before they can use it effectively. And we have to figure out how to incorporate it into their daily work routines.”
The article appeared first in NTU's research & innovation magazine Pushing Frontiers (issue #25, August 2025).
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