December 6, 2024
Overview
Designed as a national, longitudinal research platform, the Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging (CLSA) includes participants from all 10 Canadian provinces and collects comprehensive data and biological samples that support a wide variety of aging-related research questions.
Researchers can apply to access de-identified data from more than 50,000 participants that include biological, medical, psychological, social, lifestyle and economic aspects of aging, disability and disease.
Data Availability
The cohort of 51,338 participants, aged 45 to 85 years at recruitment, is comprised of two complementary cohorts that may be studied separately or together.
The Tracking cohort includes 21,241 participants randomly selected from within all 10 provinces who are interviewed by telephone.
The Comprehensive cohort includes 30,097 participants randomly selected from within 25–50 km of 11 Data Collection Sites in seven provinces. These participants are interviewed in person, take part in in-depth physical assessments, and provide biological samples.
Core data collection occurs every three years, with additional data collection measures incorporated at each follow-up to enhance the CLSA research platform.
Questionnaire data
Questionnaire data collected since 2011 through telephone and in-person interviews
Physical assessments
Physical assessment data collected from the Comprehensive cohort at Data Collection Sites
Blood biomarkers & Omics data
Hematology, chemistry, genomics, epigenetics and metabolomics data from the Comprehensive cohort
Platform enhancements
Additions to core data collection are made to further enhance the CLSA research platform. Recent enhancement includes COVID-19 questionnaire and seroprevalence study data.
Data Access
The CLSA data are currently available to approved public sector researchers in Canada and elsewhere. Visit Data Access to learn more about eligibility and how to apply for access.
Data Preview Portal
The DataPreview Portal is a variable search tool designed to enable researchers to locate items of interest within available data. The CLSA DataPreview Portal is available in English only.
Trainees
The CLSA provides alphanumeric data to qualified graduate students and postdoctoral and clinical fellows at no cost. Providing free access to CLSA data for trainees has two objectives:
- To build the capacity for population-based research in Canada
- To introduce trainees to the CLSA platform, increasing awareness of the data holdings, and providing a foundation for emerging research careers
Approved Projects
Find out how the CLSA research platform is being used by searching all projects approved since 2014. Approved projects can be searched by keyword, institution, year and completion status.
Publications
Search all scientific publications using CLSA data by author, keyword and year.
Researcher Resources
Frequently Asked Questions
Find answers to some of the most common queries about the CLSA.
Recent News
Explore the research findings, webinar recordings and videos, and the latest news from the CLSA.
