Number 16 n July 8, 2009

Health Characteristics of Adults Aged 55 Years and
 

Over: United States, 2004–2007
 by Charlotte A. Schoenborn, M.P.H., and Kathleen M. Heyman, M.S.

Division of Health Interview Statistics

Abstract

Objectives—This report highlights selected health characteristics of four age

groups of older adults—55–64 years, 65–74 years, 75–84 years, and 85 years and

over—using data from the 2004 through 2007 National Health Interview Survey

(NHIS). Data are presented for each of these age groups by sex, race and

Hispanic origin, and by poverty, health insurance, and marital status.

Methods—The estimates were derived from the family and sample adult

components of the 2004–2007 NHIS. Estimates are based on interviews with

36,984 sample adults aged 55 years and over, weighted to be nationally

representative of adults in this age group.

Results—Prevalence rates for fair or poor health status, selected chronic

health conditions, difficulties with physical or social impairments, health care

access and utilization, and health behaviors such as healthy weight, never having

smoked, and currently being a nonsmoker, generally increased with advancing

age. Prevalence of leisure-time physical activity and sleeping seven to eight

hours decreased with age. Variations in health were noted for each age group,

with the most consistent and striking results found for poverty status and health

insurance coverage. Poor adults, near poor adults, and adults with Medicaid were

the most disadvantaged in terms of health status, physical and social functioning,

health care utilization, and health behaviors.

Conclusion—Health disparities exist across subgroups of older adults and

vary by age.

Keywords: National Health Interview Survey c elderly c health status c health

behaviors

Introduction

Healthy aging has emerged as one

of the major public health opportunities

of the 21st century. Since the turn of the

last century, there have been dramatic

improvements in life expectancy. From

1900 through 1902, life expectancy at

age 65 was 12 years; by 2005, life

expectancy for this age group had

increased to 18.7 years (1,2). The

proportion of the U.S. population aged

65 and over more than tripled from

1900 (4.1%) through 2000 (12.4%) (3).

According to U.S. Census Bureau

projections, by 2030 adults aged 65 and

over are expected to constitute 20% of

the total U.S. population (4). The age

group examined in this report—adults

aged 55 and over—is expected to

constitute nearly one-third (31.1%) of

the population by 2030 (4).

Today, as U.S. adults live longer,

there is growing emphasis on extending

not just years of life, but years of

quality life. Prevention, early diagnosis,

and treatment of many of the diseases

traditionally associated with older age

have contributed to the extension of

healthy years for many adults. As our

understanding of aging-related health

issues expands, and advances in medical

technology continue, the opportunities

for older adults to live longer, healthier

lives should continue to increase.

In 2007, the Centers for Disease

Control and Prevention (CDC) issued a

report on the state of aging and health

in America that described an action plan

for improving the health of older

Americans (5). This action plan includes

injury prevention, reduction in

prevalence of selected chronic health

conditions, and increases in prevalence

of health-promoting behaviors and use

of preventive health services.

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES 

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 

National Center for Health Statistics 
Page 2 National Health Statistics Reports n Number 16 n July 8, 2009

Monitoring the health status

characteristics, health care utilization,

and preventive health behaviors of older

adults is critical for appropriately

addressing the health care needs of this

population. Federal and state efforts to

monitor and improve the health of older

U.S. adults were discussed in an earlier

report (6). Federal data sources continue

to provide a rich source of information

on all aspects of health and aging

(7–14). Community-based studies and

studies of special populations have

focused on a myriad of aging-related

health issues, including disparities in

physical and mental health status;

disability and access to health care

(15–20); associations among various

health conditions and impairments in

older adults (21,22); and the health

benefits and consequences of personal

health behaviors (23–25). Researchers

worldwide are working to more clearly

define the concept of healthy aging and

to identify health, social, and behavioral

characteristics that increase the

probability of successful aging (26,27).

This report—an update of a

2000–2003 report—provides prevalence

estimates for selected health

characteristics of adults aged 55 and

over living in households throughout the

United States, based on data from the

2004–2007 National Health Interview

Survey (NHIS) (6,28–31). The report

highlights some of the most prominent

age and subgroup differences in several

key health indicators and provides

additional benchmarks for charting

progress in improving the health and

well-being of older Americans in the

21st century.

Methods

Data source

The statistics in this report are

based on data from the 2004–2007

NHIS (28–31). NHIS is one of the

major data collection systems of CDC’s

National Center for Health Statistics

(NCHS). Based on a nationally

representative sample of the U.S.

civilian noninstitutionalized household

population, information is collected on a

wide range of demographic and health

characteristics of persons of all ages in

three major components—the family

core, the sample adult core, and the

sample child core. Information contained

in this report is based on data collected

in the family core and the sample adult

core for persons aged 55 and over.

Estimates are weighted to reflect the

U.S. population.

Measurement

This report describes the health

characteristics of older adults in four

age groups—55–64 years, 65–74 years,

75–84 years, and 85 years and over—by

sex, race and Hispanic origin, and by

poverty, health insurance, and marital

status. Adults in the age group 55–64,

although approaching retirement, are

usually still working; some are still

engaged in raising families, and some

are beginning to experience chronic

health problems typical of older adults.

The age group 55–64 serves as a useful

benchmark for assessing the patterns in

health characteristics observed among

adults in the older groups. Estimates in

this report are age-specific. Age

adjustment to a standard population was

not done in order to maximize

comparability with other nonadjusted

estimates published in Older Americans

2008 (14). Although many of the health

characteristics examined in this report

are likely to be correlated, this report is

limited to highlighting

sociodemographic variations for each

characteristic separately, with emphasis

on differences by age. Many of the

measures included here are also

available in annual reports from NHIS,

although those reports contain less detail

for the older age groups (32–39).

Definitions of the sociodemographic and

health characteristics are provided in the

‘‘Technical Notes’’ section of this report.

Readers are particularly encouraged to

review the definitions of health

insurance coverage, which are complex.

Categories of coverage are based on a

hierarchy and are mutually exclusive.

The term ‘‘Medicaid,’’ used throughout

this report, refers to public health

insurance coverage that includes

Medicaid and other state and local

programs. Adults covered by military

insurance (with or without Medicare)

are included in the ‘‘other coverage’’

category.

The health measures examined

include assessed health status, selected

chronic conditions and impairments,

difficulty with physical and social

activities, use of health services,

immunizations, and key health-related

behaviors. Together these indicators

provide an overview of the health

characteristics of older U.S. adults.

Demographic and assessed health status

information is collected from the family

respondent, who may or may not be the

same as the sample adult respondent. All

other data used for this analysis are

obtained as part of the sample adult

interview, for which self-response is

required unless the designated

respondent is physically or mentally

incapable of responding for him or

herself (about 2% of respondents aged

55 and over). Assessed health status has

been shown to predict subsequent health

and mortality in a longitudinal study of

aging (40).

This report includes two variables

not found in the earlier 2000–2003

report: serious psychological distress

(Table 1) and sleeping 7 to 8 hours in a

24-hour period (Table 4). Questions

related to serious psychological distress

have been included in the annual core

questionnaire since its redesign in 1997.

However, prevalence of serious

psychological distress, as measured in

NHIS, is low in the older population,

and thus estimates may be unreliable for

key subgroups of older adults. Despite

this limitation, the measure was added

to the current report in order to provide

at least some information on this very

important aspect of health for older

adults.

The National Institutes of Health’s

National Heart, Lung, and Blood

Institute has identified 7 to 8 hours of

sleep a night as the optimal amount for

most adults although this can vary by

age and from person to person (41).

Sleep is important for maintaining

memory and concentration and reducing

risk of cardiovascular and other chronic

conditions (41). A question about usual

hours of sleep was first introduced into

the NHIS core questionnaire in 2004
 

National Health Statistics Reports n Number 16 n July 8, 2009	 Page 3

and thus was not available for the

earlier report. Estimates of favorable

sleep practices, that is, usually sleeping

7 to 8 hours in a 24-hour period,

provide additional insight into the

prevalence of healthy behaviors among

older adults.

For those interested in exploring

other aspects of the health of older

adults not covered in this report, the

complete questionnaires for each data

year as well as public-use data files and

documentation are available free of

charge from the NCHS website at

http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/. The questions,

sometimes paraphrased, appear in the

footnotes of each table.

Statistical analysis

Estimates and associated standard

errors shown in Tables 1–4 were

generated using SUDAAN, a software

package that is designed to handle

complex sample designs such as that

used by NHIS (42). Estimates for each

year were weighted by sex, age, and

race/ethnicity to reflect the U.S. civilian

noninstitutionalized population (28–31).

Estimates shown in this report are

average annual estimates for adults aged

55 and over. Estimates with a relative

standard error of greater than 30% and

less than or equal to 50% are identified

with an asterisk preceding the estimate.

Readers should exercise caution when

interpreting these statistics. Estimates

with a relative standard error of more

than 50% are indicated with a dagger

and are not shown.

Statistical tests performed to assess

significance of differences in the

estimates were two-tailed t tests with no

adjustments for multiple comparisons.

The critical value used to compare the

estimates at the 0.05 level was 1.96.

Terms such as ‘‘greater than’’ and ‘‘less

than’’ indicate a statistically significant

difference. Terms such as ‘‘similar’’ or

‘‘no difference’’ indicate that the

statistics being compared were not

significantly different. Lack of comment

regarding the difference between any

two statistics does not mean that the

difference was tested and found to be

not significant.

Results

Health status and conditions

(Table 1)

Overall, prevalence of fair or poor

health, hypertension, heart disease,

hearing impairment, vision impairment,

and absence of all natural teeth

increased as age increased. Prevalence

of serious psychological distress and of

diabetes did not show the same pattern.

Some of the most striking variations in

prevalence of these health conditions by

age and sociodemographic

characteristics are highlighted below.

Comparisons of race and Hispanic

origin differences are complicated by

large standard errors for some of these

subgroups, especially at the oldest ages.

Health status

+	 Overall, 22.9% of adults aged 55 and

over were in fair or poor health,

ranging from 19.6% of those aged

55–64 to 32.1% of those aged 85 and

over.

+	 Men and women were about equally

likely to be in fair or poor health in

all but the oldest age group; among

adults aged 85 and over, men were

more likely than women to be in fair

or poor health.

+	 Across all of the age groups studied,

non-Hispanic white adults were less

likely than non-Hispanic black and

Hispanic adults to be in fair or poor

health. Prevalence of fair or poor

health was generally similar for

non-Hispanic white and non-Hispanic

Asian adults.

+	 Poor adults were more likely than

adults who were not poor to be in

fair or poor health (Figure 1, Table 1),

with the greatest differences seen for

adults not yet eligible for

Medicare—those aged 55–64.

+	 Adults with Medicaid coverage were

more likely than those with private

insurance to be in fair or poor health.

Adults aged 55–64 with Medicaid

coverage (58.4%) were almost five

times as likely as those with private

health insurance (12.4%) to be in fair

or poor health. In contrast, adults

aged 65 and over with Medicaid and

Medicare coverage (54.6%) were

about 2.5 times as likely as those

who have private health insurance

coverage (21.1%) to be in fair or

poor health.

+	 Marital status differences in assessed

health status varied by age. Among

adults aged 55–64 and 65–74, those

who were currently married were less

likely than adults in other marital

status groups to be in fair or poor

health. Among adults aged 75–84 and

85 and over, those who were

currently married were more likely

than adults in other marital status

groups to be in fair or poor health.

An analysis of gender differences in

0 

10 

20 

30 

40 

50 

60

 55–64 65–74 75–84 85 and over 

Percent 

DATA SOURCE: CDC/NCHS, National Health Interview Survey, 2004–2007. 

NOTE: Data are based on household interviews of a sample of the civilian noninstitutionalized population. 

Age (years) 

1Defined as follows: “poor” (family incomes below poverty threshold); “near poor” (family incomes 100% to less than 

200% of poverty threshold); and “not poor” (family incomes 200% of poverty threshold or greater). 

Poverty status1 Poor Near poor Not poor 95% confidence interval

Figure 1. Percentage of adults aged 55 and over who were in fair or poor health, by age

and poverty status: United States, 2004–2007
Page 4	 National Health Statistics Reports n Number 16 n July 8, 2009

the relationship between marital

status and health (not shown)

revealed that patterns were generally

similar for men and women.

Serious psychological distress

+ Overall, about 2.9% of older adults

experienced serious psychological

distress in the past 30 days. Adults

aged 55–64 (3.6%) were more likely

than those aged 65 and over (2.2%)

to have experienced serious

psychological distress.

+ Women were more likely than men to

report symptoms of serious

psychological distress across all age

groups, with gender differences most

notable among adults aged 55–64

(4.4% of women compared with 2.7%

of men).

+ Serious psychological distress was

generally highest among adults who

were non-Hispanic black, Hispanic,

poor or near poor, covered by

Medicaid, and not currently married.

Hypertension

+ About one-half of adults aged 55 and

over (47.3%) had hypertension,

ranging from 40.8% of those aged

55–64 to 55.7% of those aged 75–84.

+ Gender differences in prevalence of

hypertension varied by age. In the

youngest age group, men were more

likely than women to have

hypertension, whereas among adults

aged 65 and over, women were more

likely than men to have this

condition.

+ Non-Hispanic black adults had the

highest rates of hypertension among

the racial and ethnic groups studied.

Among those aged 55–64, 57.2% of

non-Hispanic black adults had

hypertension compared with 39.1% of

non-Hispanic white adults, 39.0% of

Hispanic adults, and 33.5% of

non-Hispanic Asian adults. Among

adults aged 75–84, about 7 out of 10

(70.6%) non-Hispanic black adults

had hypertension compared with

somewhat more than one-half of

non-Hispanic white adults (54.4%),

Hispanic adults (54.7%), and

non-Hispanic Asian adults (56.7%).

+	 Except in the oldest age group, adults

with Medicaid coverage had higher

rates of hypertension than adults with

private health insurance coverage.

Among adults aged 55–64, prevalence

of hypertension among those with

Medicaid coverage (60.0%) was

markedly higher than among those

with private health insurance

coverage (38.7%). Among adults aged

65 and over, prevalence of

hypertension among those having

Medicaid and Medicare (63.4%) was

also higher than for adults with

private coverage (52.6%), although

the differences were smaller than for

the younger age group.

Heart disease

+	 Prevalence of heart disease increased

with age. One out of four adults aged

55 and over (24.8%) had heart

disease, with rates more than

doubling between the age groups

55–64 (17.3%) and 85 and over

(40.7%).

+	 Men were more likely than women to

have heart disease, regardless of age.

Differences between men and women

were greater for adults aged 65 and

over than for those in the youngest

age group.

+	 The relationship between race and

Hispanic origin and heart disease

varied by age. Among those aged

55–64, non-Hispanic black (17.0%)

and non-Hispanic white (18.0%)

adults had similar rates of heart

disease, while Hispanic adults

(13.3%) and non-Hispanic Asian

adults (9.3%) had lower prevalence.

In contrast, among adults aged 65 and

over, prevalence of heart disease was

higher for non-Hispanic white adults

(32.9%) than for non-Hispanic black

adults (25.6%), Hispanic adults

(24.5%), or non-Hispanic Asian

adults (20.6%).

+	 Among those under age 75, poor

adults had higher rates of heart

disease than those who were not poor.

Heart disease was not associated with

poverty in the two oldest age groups.

Diabetes

+	 Unlike most other conditions studied,

prevalence of diabetes did not

increase consistently with age:

prevalence of diabetes was highest

among adults aged 65–74 (19.2%)

and 75–84 (18.2%) and lowest among

those 55–64 (14.1%) and 85 and over

(13.0%).

+	 Prevalence of diabetes was higher for

non-Hispanic black and Hispanic

adults than for non-Hispanic white or

non-Hispanic Asian adults. Among

those aged 55–64, non-Hispanic black

(22.1%) and Hispanic (20.0%) adults

were more likely than non-Hispanic

white adults (12.3%) to have

diabetes. Similarly, among those aged

65 and over, rates of diabetes were

higher for non-Hispanic black

(29.6%) and Hispanic (27.8%) adults

than for non-Hispanic white adults

(16.0%).

+	 Except among the oldest adults, poor

adults were more likely than those

who were not poor to have diabetes.

Among those aged 55–64, poor adults

(21.8%) were nearly twice as likely

to have diabetes as adults who were

not poor (12.1%). Among adults aged

65–74, poor (25.7%) and near poor

(23.3%) adults also were more likely

to have diabetes than adults who

were not poor (17.0%).

+	 Adults with Medicaid coverage were

considerably more likely to have

diabetes than adults with private

insurance coverage, uninsured adults,

or those covered by Medicare only.

Hearing impairment

+	 The prevalence of hearing impairment

increased with age. Overall, nearly

one-third of adults aged 55 and over

(31.6%) had some level of hearing

impairment, ranging from 23.0% of

those aged 55–64 to 62.1% of those

aged 85 and over.

+	 Sex differences in prevalence of

hearing impairment varied by age.

Among adults aged 55–64, men

(30.2%) were nearly twice as likely

as women (16.4%) to have hearing

impairment. Among adults aged

75–84, men (53.5%) were about 1.5

times as likely as women (37.0%) to

have difficulty hearing. Among adults

aged 85 and over, the gap in rates of

hearing impairment between men
National Health Statistics Reports n Number 16 n July 8, 2009	 Page 5

(69.0%) and women (58.5%)
 

narrowed.
 

+ Among those aged 65 and over, 4 out

of 10 non-Hispanic white adults

(41.6%) had hearing impairment

compared with about 2 out of 10

non-Hispanic black adults (23.6%)

and about 3 out of 10 non-Hispanic

Asian (30.1%) and Hispanic (28.2%)

adults.

Vision impairment (even when

wearing glasses)

+ Prevalence of vision impairment more

than doubled between the age groups

55–64 (11.7%) and 85 and over

(26.9%).

+ Women were more likely than men to

have vision impairment, except

among adults aged 85 and over.

+ Non-Hispanic black adults were more

likely than non-Hispanic white and

non-Hispanic Asian adults to have

vision impairment in all but the

oldest age group.

+ Rates of vision impairment were

highest among poor and near poor

adults and those with Medicaid

coverage, with the differences by

poverty and insurance status most

pronounced among adults aged

55–64.

Absence of natural teeth

+ Prevalence of total tooth loss

increased with age. Overall, about

one in five adults aged 55 and over

(19.0%) had lost all of their natural

teeth, with rates of total tooth loss

doubling between the age groups

55–64 (11.0%) and 65–74 (22.0%).

More than one-third (35.6%) of adults

aged 85 and over had lost all of their

natural teeth.

+ Poor and near poor adults were more

likely than those who were not poor

to have lost all their natural teeth.

Among those aged 55–64, about 2

out of 10 poor (21.8%) and near poor

(19.0%) adults had lost all their

natural teeth compared with fewer

than 1 out of 10 who were not poor

(8.3%). Among those aged 75–84,

about 4 out of 10 poor (42.2%) and

near poor (35.9%) adults had lost all

their natural teeth compared with less

than one-fourth (23.1%) of adults

who were not poor.

+	 Adults with Medicaid coverage were

two to three times as likely as those

with private coverage to have lost all

their natural teeth. Among adults aged

55–64, about one out of four of those

with Medicaid coverage (27.0%) had

lost all their natural teeth compared

with about 1 out of 10 adults with

private coverage (8.0%). Among

adults aged 65 and over, those with

Medicaid and Medicare coverage

(44.4%) were nearly twice as likely

as those with private coverage

(22.5%) to have lost all their teeth.

Difficulty with physical and

social functioning (Table 2)

Prevalence of difficulty with

functioning in physical and social

activities generally increased with age,

with the greatest increase occurring

between the two oldest age groups

(Figure 2, Table 2). Prevalence estimates

and the magnitude of subgroup

differences varied by activity. However,

overall, the patterns of subgroup

differences were remarkably similar

across activities. Selected highlights are

presented, but the reader is encouraged

to examine Table 2 for specific activities

and subgroups of interest.

Prevalence of difficulty by age

+	 One out of four adults aged 55 and

over (25.0%) had difficulty walking

95% confidence interval 

DATA SOURCE: CDC/NCHS, National Health Interview Survey, 2004–2007. 

NOTE: Data are based on household interviews of a sample of the civilian noninstitutionalized population. 

0 

20 

40 

60 

80 

Walking 1/4 mile Stooping or 

bending 

Carrying 10 

Percent 

55–64 years 65–74 years 75–84 years 85 years and over 

Standing 2 hours 

pounds 

Figure 2. Percentage of adults aged 55 and over who had at least some difficulty with

selected physical functioning, by age: United States, 2004–2007

one-quarter of one mile, ranging from

17.3% of those aged 55–64 to over

one-half (56.1%) of those aged 85

and over.

+	 About one out of five adults aged 55

and over had difficulty walking up 10

steps. Adults aged 85 and over

(45.2%) were more than three times

as likely as those aged 55–64 (13.4%)

to have difficulty with this activity.

+	 About one out of four adults aged 55

and over (27.6%) had difficulty

standing for two hours, with

prevalence increasing nearly threefold between the age groups 55–64

(20.1%) and 85 and over (59.3%).

+	 About 1 out of 10 adults aged 55 and

over had difficulty sitting for two

hours; prevalence of this difficulty

ranged from 9.9% of adults aged

65–74 to 13.8% of those aged 85 and

over.

+	 About 3 out of 10 adults aged 55 and

over (30.3%) had difficulty stooping

or bending. Prevalence of this

difficulty more than doubled between

the age groups 55–64 (23.4%) and 85

and over (53.1%).

+	 About 1 out of 10 adults aged 55 and

over had difficulty reaching (11.0%)

or grasping (9.4%), with rates for

those aged 85 and over 2.5 times that

of adults aged 55–64.

+	 Overall, 15.2% of adults aged 55 and

over had difficulty carrying 10

pounds. Prevalence of difficulty in

carrying objects increased with age.
Page 6	 National Health Statistics Reports n Number 16 n July 8, 2009

About 11.0% of adults aged 55–64

had difficulty carrying 10 pounds

compared with 37.5% of those aged

85 and over.

+ About one out of five adults aged 55

and over (20.9%) had difficulty

pushing or pulling large objects, with

rates for those aged 85 and over

(47.9%) triple that of adults aged

55–64 (15.5%).

+ About 1 out of 10 adults aged 55 and

over had difficulty shopping (13.3%)

or socializing (9.7%). Rates increased

modestly between the age groups

55–64 and 75–84 and then doubled

between the age groups 75–84 and 85

and over. Among adults aged 85 and

over, about one-third (34.1%) had

difficulty shopping and about

one-fourth (27.6%) had difficulty

socializing.

Sociodemographic variations in

difficulty with activities

+ Across the activities studied, women

were more likely than men to have

difficulty with physical and social

activities, with the largest differences

noted in those aged 65 and over.

+ Non-Hispanic black adults had

somewhat higher rates of difficulty

than adults in the other race or

Hispanic origin groups.

+ Poor adults had higher rates of

difficulty than adults who were not

poor with differences greatest for

those aged 55–64.

+ Adults covered by Medicaid had

higher rates of physical and social

difficulty than those with private

insurance, uninsured adults, or those

covered by Medicare only.

+ Currently married adults generally

had the lowest rates of difficulty with

physical or social activities and

formerly married adults had the

highest rates.

Health care utilization

(Table 3)

Prevalence of most types of health

care utilization—having a regular source

of health care, getting a pneumonia or

influenza shot (i.e., pneumococcal or

influenza vaccination), visiting the

doctor or emergency room, and

receiving home care—increased with

age. However, the prevalence of having

a dental visit in the past year declined

steadily with advancing age. Disparities

in health care access and utilization, by

age and selected sociodemographic

characteristics, are highlighted below.

Differences in prevalence of pneumonia

shot between adults under age 65 and

those aged 65 and over are presented

but should be interpreted with caution as

the recommendations of CDC’s

Advisory Committee on Immunization

Practices (ACIP) differ for the two age

groups. Pneumococcal vaccination is

only recommended for adults under age

65 if they are at increased risk of

pneumococcal disease or its

complications. Estimates for influenza

vaccination are based on a question

about having had a flu shot and do not

include FluMist®, which is not

recommended for the older age groups

covered in this report.

Regular source of health care

+	 Overall, 94.3% of adults aged 55 and

over had a regular source of health

care. Having a regular source of

health care varied by age, ranging

from 91.9% of those aged 55–64 to

97.5% of those aged 85 and over.

+	 Among adults aged 55–64, women

(93.2%) were more likely than men

(90.6%) to have a regular source of

health care. However, in the age

groups 75–84 and 85 and over, men

and women were about equally likely

to have a regular source of care.

+	 Among adults aged 55–64, Hispanic

adults (82.6%) were less likely than

adults in the other race or Hispanic

origin groups to have a regular source

of care. Differences by race or

Hispanic origin were smaller in the

older age groups.

+	 Among those aged 55–64, uninsured

adults (64.8%) were less likely than

those with Medicaid (96.0%) and

those with private coverage (95.4%)

to have a regular source of health

care.

+	 Among adults aged 65 and over,

more than 90% of adults had a

regular source of health care,

regardless of sex, race or Hispanic

origin, poverty, health insurance
 

status, or marital status.
 

Pneumonia shot

+	 Four out of 10 adults aged 55 and

over (40.3%) had ever had a

pneumonia shot. Adults aged 75–84

(64.4%) and those aged 85 and over

(62.2%) were about three times as

likely as those aged 55–64 (21.2%) to

have had a pneumonia shot.

+	 Among adults under age 75, women

were slightly more likely than men to

have ever had a pneumonia shot. No

sex difference was found for adults

aged 75 and over.

+	 Non-Hispanic white adults were more

likely than adults in the other race or

Hispanic origin groups to have had a

pneumonia shot, regardless of age.

However, in the youngest age group,

rates for non-Hispanic white adults

(22.7%) were only modestly higher

than rates for non-Hispanic black

adults (19.7%), with rates for

non-Hispanic Asian (10.9%) and

Hispanic (13.1%) adults substantially

lower. In contrast, among adults aged

65 and over, non-Hispanic white

adults (61.4%) were substantially and

consistently more likely than adults in

the other race or Hispanic origin

groups to have had a pneumonia shot.

+	 Prevalence of getting a pneumonia

shot was associated with poverty

status, although the association

differed for adults under and over age

65. Among those aged 55–64, poor

(25.9%) or near poor (24.2%) adults

were more likely than those who

were not poor (20.1%) to have had a

pneumonia shot. In contrast, among

those aged 65 and over, poor adults

(45.7%) were less likely than those

who were not poor (59.4%) or near

poor (55.5%) to have had a

pneumonia shot.

+	 The association between receipt of

pneumonia vaccination and health

insurance status also varied by age.

Adults aged 55–64 with Medicaid

(35.8%) were more likely than adults

with private insurance (19.9%) and

uninsured adults (12.1%) to have had

a pneumonia shot. In contrast, among

adults aged 65 and over, those with
 

 

National Health Statistics Reports n Number 16 n July 8, 2009	 Page 7

DATA SOURCE: CDC/NCHS, National Health Interview Survey, 2004–2007. 

NOTE: Data are based on household interviews of a sample of the civilian noninstitutionalized population. Percent 

Non-Hispanic white Non-Hispanic black Non-Hispanic Asian Hispanic 

0 

20 

40 

60 

80 

100

 55–64 65–74 75–84 85 and over 

Age (years) 

95% confidence interval 

Figure 3. Percentage of adults aged 55 and over who received a flu shot in the past 12

months, by age and race/ethnicity: United States, 2004–2007

Medicaid and Medicare (44.9%) or

Medicare only (48.7%) were less

likely than those with private

insurance (61.8%) to have had a

pneumonia shot.

Flu shot

+ Gender differences were found in

prevalence of getting a flu shot,

although these were not consistent

across the older age groups. Among

adults under age 75, women were

more likely than men to have had a

flu shot in the past 12 months; among

adults aged 75 and over, women were

less likely than men to have had a flu

shot.

+ Non-Hispanic white adults were more

likely than non-Hispanic black and

Hispanic adults to have had a flu shot

in the past 12 months (Figure 3,

Table 3).

+ Among adults aged 55–64, those with

private insurance (38.1%) and

Medicaid (43.3%) were more than

twice as likely as uninsured adults

(17.8%) to have received a flu shot in

the past 12 months. Among those

aged 65 and over, nearly 7 out of 10

adults with private insurance

coverage (67.7%) received a flu shot

in the past 12 months compared to

less than 6 out of 10 adults with

Medicaid and Medicare coverage

(55.8%) and those with Medicare

only (56.7%).

+ Across all age groups, adults who

were currently married were more

likely than those who were formerly

married to have received a flu shot in

the past 12 months. Marital status

differences increased with age.

Among those aged 55–64, 37.6% of

married adults had received a flu shot

in the past 12 months compared with

33.9% of formerly married adults;

among those aged 85 and over,

80.1% of married adults had received

a flu shot compared with 68.7% of

formerly married adults.

Dental visit

+	 The percentage of older adults who

had visited a dentist in the past 12

months declined steadily with age.

About two-thirds (65.9%) of adults

aged 55–64 had visited a dentist in

the past year compared with 50.6% of

those aged 85 and over.

+	 Among adults aged 55–64 and 65–74,

women were more likely than men to

have visited a dentist in the past 12

months. In the two oldest age groups,

men and women were about equally

likely to have visited a dentist.

+	 Non-Hispanic white and non-Hispanic

Asian adults were much more likely

than non-Hispanic black or Hispanic

adults to have visited a dentist in the

past 12 months.

+	 Prevalence of dental visits declined

with age among all racial and ethnic

groups studied, but the low

prevalence of dental visits for

non-Hispanic black adults aged 75–84

(31.7%) and 85 and over (24.8%)

was particularly striking. By

comparison, about 6 out of 10

non-Hispanic white adults aged

75–84 (60.4%) and more than

one-half of non-Hispanic white adults

aged 85 and over (53.3%) had visited

a dentist.

+	 Regardless of age, older adults who

were not poor were about twice as

likely as poor adults to have visited a

dentist in the past 12 months

(Figure 4, Table 3).

+	 Older adults with private health

insurance coverage were more likely

than those with Medicaid to have

visited a dentist in the past 12

months.

+	 Older adults who were currently

married were more likely than those

who were formerly married to have

55–64 65–74 85 and over 

Percent 

Poverty status1 Poor Near poor Not poor 95% confidence interval

Age (years) 

0 

20 

40 

60 

80 

100 

DATA SOURCE: CDC/NCHS, National Health Interview Survey, 2004–2007. 

NOTE: Data are based on household interviews of a sample of the civilian noninstitutionalized population. 

1Defined as follows: “poor” (family incomes below poverty threshold); “near poor” (family incomes 100% to less than 

200% of poverty threshold); and “not poor” (family incomes 200% of poverty threshold or greater). 

75–84 

Figure 4. Percentage of adults aged 55 and over who visited a dentist in the past 12

months, by age and poverty status: United States, 2004–2007
Page 8	 National Health Statistics Reports n Number 16 n July 8, 2009

visited a dentist in the past 12
 

months.
 

Doctor visit

+ About 87.8% of adults aged 55–64

had visited a doctor in the past 12

months compared with 94.9% of

those aged 75–84 and 96.6% of those

aged 85 and over.

+ With the exception of adults aged 85

and over, women were more likely

than men to have visited a doctor in

the past 12 months. Women (96.8%)

and men (96.3%) in the oldest age

group were about equally likely to

have visited a doctor.

+ Hispanic adults were less likely than

non-Hispanic white and non-Hispanic

black adults to have visited a doctor

in the past 12 months.

+ Among the pre-Medicare-eligible

population aged 55–64, uninsured

adults (63.0%) were much less likely

than adults with private insurance

(90.7%) or Medicaid (94.0%) to have

visited a doctor in the past 12

months. Among adults aged 65 and

over, variations by health insurance

status were considerably smaller; 9

out of 10 adults in these age groups

had visited a doctor in the past year,

regardless of their health insurance

coverage status.

Emergency room visit

+ Overall, one-fifth of adults aged 55

and over had visited an emergency

room in the past 12 months, ranging

from 18.8% of those aged 55–64 to

32.5% of those aged 85 and over.

Men and women were about equally

likely to have visited an emergency

room in the past 12 months.

+ Among those aged 55–64 and 65–74,

non-Hispanic black adults were more

likely than non-Hispanic white adults

to have visited an emergency room in

the past 12 months.

+ Poor adults were more likely than

adults who were not poor to have

visited an emergency room in the past

12 months, in all age groups except

the oldest. Among those aged 55–64,

poor adults (31.2%) were nearly

twice as likely as adults who were

not poor (16.4%) to have visited an

emergency room in the past 12

months. Among those aged 65 and

over, the differences in emergency

room use between poor adults

(30.2%) and adults who were not

poor (22.0%) were somewhat smaller.

+	 Among adults aged 55–64, those with

Medicaid (39.9%) were more than

twice as likely as those with private

insurance (16.4%) or uninsured adults

(16.6%) to have visited an emergency

room in the past 12 months.

Similarly, among adults aged 65 and

over, those with Medicaid and

Medicare (35.6%) were more likely

than those with private insurance

(23.1%) or Medicare only (23.4%) to

have visited an emergency room in

the past 12 months.

+	 Among those under age 85, rates of

emergency room use were higher in

formerly married adults than in adults

who were currently married. Among

adults aged 55–64, 23.4% of those who

were formerly married visited an

emergency room in the past 12 months

compared with 17.4% of those who

were currently married. Among adults

aged 65 and over, 27.2% of those who

were formerly married visited an

emergency room in the past 12 months

compared with 21.9% of those who

were currently married.

Home care

+	 Overall, 4.8% of adults aged 55 and

over had utilized home care in the

past 12 months, ranging from 2.2%

of those aged 55–64 to 15.9% of

those aged 85 and over.

+	 Except for the oldest age group,

women were more likely than men to

have utilized home care in the past

12 months.

+	 Poor adults were more likely than adults

who were not poor to have utilized

home care in the past 12 months.

Among those aged 55–64, poor adults

(5.4%) were three times as likely as

those who were not poor (1.6%) to have

utilized home care in the past 12

months. Among those aged 65 and over,

poor adults (12.0%) were twice as likely

as adults who were not poor (5.5%) to

have utilized home care in the past 12

months.

+	 Adults with Medicaid were more

likely than those with private

insurance to have utilized home care

in the past 12 months. Among adults

aged 55–64, those with Medicaid

(11.0%) were more than six times as

likely as those with private insurance

(1.6%) to have utilized home care in

the past 12 months. Among adults 65

and over, those with Medicaid and

Medicare were two to three times as

likely as those with private insurance

to have utilized home care in the past

12 months.

Health behaviors (Table 4)

Prevalence of any leisure-time

physical activity, regular leisure-time

physical activity, strengthening activity,

and sleeping 7 to 8 hours in a 24-hour

period (which may include naps)

decreased with age. Healthy weight,

never having smoked, and being a

nonsmoker increased with age.

Highlights of these findings are

presented below.

Any leisure-time physical activity

+	 About one-half of adults aged 55 and

over (51.9%) engaged in at least

some light, moderate, or vigorous

leisure-time physical activity. About 6

out of 10 adults aged 55–64 (58.1%)

engaged in leisure-time physical

activity compared with about 3 out of

10 adults aged 85 and over (29.2%).

+	 Differences between men and women

in rates of participation in any

leisure-time physical activity varied

by age. Among adults aged 55–64,

rates of participation were about the

same for men (58.6%) and women

(57.6%). Among adults aged 65 and

over, men (51.4%) were more likely

than women (42.9%) to participate in

leisure-time physical activities.

+	 Non-Hispanic white and non-Hispanic

Asian adults were more likely than

non-Hispanic black or Hispanic adults

to engage in at least some leisuretime physical activity. Among those

aged 55–64, about 6 out of 10

non-Hispanic white (61.6%) and

non-Hispanic Asian (54.5%) adults

engaged in some leisure-time
 

National Health Statistics Reports n Number 16 n July 8, 2009	 Page 9

physical activity compared with about

4 out of 10 non-Hispanic black

(43.7%) and Hispanic (43.6%) adults.

Among those aged 65 and over, about

5 out of 10 non-Hispanic white

(48.4%) and non-Hispanic Asian

(52.8%) adults engaged in leisuretime physical activity compared with

about 3 out of 10 non-Hispanic black

(33.7%) and Hispanic (34.6%) adults.

+ Adults who were not poor were about

twice as likely as poor adults to engage

in leisure-time physical activity in each

of the older age groups. Among those

aged 55–64, two-thirds of adults who

were not poor (64.0%) engaged in some

type of leisure-time physical activity

compared with about one-third of poor

adults (34.5%). One-third of those aged

85 and over who were not poor (34.1%)

engaged in some leisure-time physical

activity compared with 18.3% of poor

adults in this age group.

+ Adults with private health insurance

coverage were about twice as likely

as those with Medicaid to engage in

some level of leisure-time physical

activity.

+ Currently married adults were more

likely than those who were formerly

married or never married to engage in

leisure-time physical activity. Among

those aged 55–64, 6 out of 10

currently married adults (60.0%)

engaged in leisure-time physical

activity compared with about 5 out of

10 formerly married (53.3%) and

never married (54.1%) adults. Among

those aged 65 and over, about 5 out

of 10 currently married adults

(51.6%) engaged in some leisure-time

physical activity compared with about

4 out of 10 formerly married (39.7%)

and never married (43.8%) adults.

Regular leisure-time physical

activity

+ Overall, about one out of four adults

aged 55 and over (24.0%) engaged in

regular leisure-time physical activity.

Prevalence of engaging in regular

leisure-time physical activity declined

with age from about one-fourth of

adults aged 55–64 or 65–74 to about

1 out of 10 adults aged 85 and over

(9.8%).

+	 Men were more likely than women to

engage in regular leisure-time

physical activity, with the greatest

differences found in the oldest age

groups.

+	 Non-Hispanic white and non-Hispanic

Asian adults were more likely than

non-Hispanic black and Hispanic

adults to engage in regular leisuretime physical activity (Figure 5,

Table 4).

+	 Adults who were not poor were two

to three times as likely as poor adults

in the same age group to engage in

regular leisure-time physical activity,

regardless of age.

+	 Adults with private health insurance

were generally more likely than

adults without private coverage to

engage in regular leisure-time

physical activity, in all but the oldest

age group.

+	 Prevalence of regular leisure-time

physical activity was higher among

currently married adults than among

formerly married adults in each age

group.

Strengthening activity (leisure

time)

+	 Rates of participation in leisure-time

activity intended to strengthen

muscles were low among adults aged

55 and over, ranging from 18.9% of

those aged 55–64 to 8.6% of those

aged 85 and over.

+	 In the age groups 55–64 and 65–74,

men and women were about equally

DATA SOURCE: CDC/NCHS, National Health Interview Survey, 2004–2007. 

NOTE: Data are based on household interviews of a sample of the civilian noninstitutionalized population. Percent 

Non-Hispanic white Non-Hispanic black Non-Hispanic Asian Hispanic

 55–64 65–74 75–84 85 and over 

Age (years) 

95% confidence interval 

0 

10 

20 

30 

40 

50 

Figure 5. Percentage of adults aged 55 and over who engaged in regular leisure-time

physical activity, by age and race/ethnicity: United States, 2004–2007

likely to engage in strengthening

activities. In the two oldest age

groups, however, men were more

likely than women to do

strengthening activities.

+	 Rates of engaging in strengthening

activities were highest among

non-Hispanic white adults, those who

were not poor, those with private

health insurance, and those who were

currently married. Most notable were

differences by poverty status: adults

who were not poor were two to three

times as likely as poor adults to

engage in strengthening activities.

Healthy weight

+	 Overall, about one-third of those aged

55 and over (33.6%) were a healthy

weight, ranging from about 3 out of

10 adults aged 55–64 (29.5%) to

more than 5 out of 10 adults aged 85

and over (53.1%).

+	 Women were more likely than men to

have a healthy weight except among

adults aged 85 and over for whom no

sex differences were found.

+	 Non-Hispanic Asian adults were the

most likely and non-Hispanic black

and Hispanic adults were the least

likely to have a healthy weight,

regardless of age; findings for the

oldest age group were not statistically

significant due to large standard

errors.

Cigarette smoking (never smoked)

+	 Overall, nearly one-half of adults

aged 55 and over (50.4%) had never
Page 10	 National Health Statistics Reports n Number 16 n July 8, 2009

smoked cigarettes. Estimates for

never having smoked cigarettes

ranged from 48.4% for the age

groups 55–64 and 65–74 to 65.5% for

those aged 85 and over.

+ Women were more likely than men to

have never smoked cigarettes in each

of the age groups studied. Among

adults aged 55–64, almost 6 out of 10

women (57.6%) had never smoked

compared with about 4 out of 10 men

(38.4%). Among adults aged 75–84,

about two-thirds of women (65.6%)

had never smoked compared with

about one-third of men (34.9%).

Among adults aged 85 and over,

about three-fourths of women

(76.5%) had never smoked cigarettes

compared with less than one-half of

men (44.4%).

+ Non-Hispanic Asian and Hispanic

adults were more likely than nonHispanic black or non-Hispanic white

adults to have never smoked

cigarettes.

+ In the age group 55–64, married

adults were more likely to have never

smoked than were formerly married

adults. However, in the older age

groups, married adults were less

likely than other marital status groups

to have never smoked.

Cigarette smoking (current

nonsmokers)

+ Prevalence of current nonsmokers (that

is, never smoked or a former smoker)

was very high among adults aged 55

and over (86.5%), increasing from

81.3% among those aged 55–64 to

97.8% among those aged 85 and over.

+ Among adults aged 55–64 and 65–74,

women were more likely than men to

be nonsmokers. In the two oldest age

groups, men and women were about

equally likely to be nonsmokers.

+ Among adults under age 75, those

with private health insurance were

more likely than those with Medicaid

to be nonsmokers. Among adults aged

55–64, 84.6% of those with private

health insurance coverage were

nonsmokers compared with 70.5% of

those with Medicaid coverage.

Among adults aged 65–74, 89.0% of

those with private health insurance

coverage were nonsmokers compared

with 80.9% of those with Medicaid

and Medicare coverage.

+	 Currently married adults under age 85

were more likely than formerly

married adults to be nonsmokers.

Differences were most notable among

those aged 55–64: 84.6% of currently

married adults in this age group were

nonsmokers compared with 72.6% of

formerly married adults.

Sleep

+	 About 6 out of 10 adults aged 55 and

over usually slept 7 to 8 hours in a

24-hour period (62.3%), ranging from

64.1% of those aged 55–64 to 52.5%

of those aged 85 and over.

+	 Non-Hispanic white adults were more

likely than non-Hispanic black adults

to have usually slept 7 to 8 hours in a

24-hour period, regardless of age.

Disparities among the other racial and

ethnic groups varied by age group.

+	 Adults who were not poor were more

likely than poor adults to have

usually slept 7 to 8 hours in a

24-hour period. Among adults aged

55–64, two-thirds who were not poor

(66.6%) slept 7 to 8 hours compared

with 53.1% of those who were poor.

Among adults aged 65 and over,

63.8% who were not poor slept 7 to 8

hours compared with 52.6% who

were poor.

+	 Adults with Medicaid coverage were

less likely to usually sleep 7 to 8

hours in a 24-hour period compared

with those having private health

insurance, no health insurance (for

ages 55–64), or Medicare only (for

ages 65 and over). Among adults

aged 65 and over, those with private

insurance and those covered by

Medicare only were about equally

likely to sleep 7 to 8 hours.

Discussion

The findings presented in this report

are based on interviews with adults

living in households across the United

States. Although the NHIS sample

includes a few residential assisted-living

units, for the most part, the interviewed

sample consists of adults who can

manage in a regular household

setting—either on their own or with the

help of other household members or

paid caregivers. Adults who are unable

to manage in the home are often living

in nursing homes or other institutional

settings and therefore are out of scope

for NHIS. This context should be kept

in mind when interpreting the findings

presented.

Overall, these findings provide a

snapshot of the health status and

physical and social functioning of U.S.

adults aged 55 and over. Of the

conditions studied, hypertension was the

most prevalent, with nearly one-half

(47.3%) of adults aged 55 and over

having this condition. Hypertension was

the most prevalent condition for every

age group except adults aged 85 and

over, for whom hearing impairment was

the most prevalent condition (62.1%).

With the exception of diabetes and

serious psychological distress,

prevalence of most health conditions

and difficulty in physical and social

functioning increased gradually between

the age groups 55–64 and 85 and

over—in some cases doubling or even

tripling between the youngest and oldest

age groups. The exceptions to this were

prevalence of diabetes (which was about

the same for adults aged 85 and over

compared with adults aged 55–64) and

serious psychological distress (which

was somewhat higher among adults

aged 65 and over compared with those

aged 55–64 but remained stable in each

of the age groups 65 and over). Use of

preventive immunizations, emergency

room visits, and home care increased

markedly with age while contact with a

dentist decreased. Over 90% of older

adults had a regular source of health

care; almost all adults aged 85 and over

(97.5%) had such a care source.

Participation in leisure-time physical

activity and sleeping 7 to 8 hours

declined with age while maintaining a

healthy body weight and abstinence

from cigarette smoking increased.

Gender differences were found

across the characteristics studied.

Although there were some variations by

age, men were more likely than women

to have heart disease and hearing

impairment. Women were more likely to

have hypertension, experience difficulty

with physical and social functioning,
National Health Statistics Reports n Number 16 n July 8, 2009	 Page 11

maintain a healthy body weight, and be

lifetime nonsmokers.

Racial and ethnic differences were

noted for most health indicators

examined, although the groups with the

lowest and highest prevalence varied.

Non-Hispanic white adults had higher

rates of heart disease, hearing

impairment, getting a flu shot, dental

visits, leisure-time physical activity, and

maintaining a healthy body weight

compared with non-Hispanic black

adults. Non-Hispanic black adults, on

the other hand, had higher rates of

hypertension, diabetes, difficulty with

physical and social functioning,

emergency room visits (for those under

age 75), and lifetime nonsmoking

compared with non-Hispanic white

adults in the same age groups. NonHispanic Asian adults had among the

lowest rates of fair or poor health,

hypertension, diabetes, vision

impairment, and difficulty with physical

and social functioning, and the highest

rates of healthy body weight and never

smoking cigarettes. Non-Hispanic black

and Hispanic adults had similar rates of

heart disease and diabetes while

non-Hispanic white and Hispanic adults

had similar rates of hypertension.

The most consistent and striking

findings are the health differences by

poverty and health insurance status.

Poor and near poor adults and those

with Medicaid had higher rates of most

of the health conditions and impairments

studied, with the exception of hearing

impairment. Regardless of age, poor and

near poor adults were less likely than

adults who were not poor to have

visited a dentist in the past year and

more likely to have had an emergency

room visit or home care. The association

between poverty and pneumonia

immunization differed by age, with poor

adults aged 55–64 more likely than

adults who were not poor to have had a

pneumonia shot and poor adults aged 65

and over less likely to have had a

pneumonia shot. Poor adults were also

less likely than those who were not poor

to be current nonsmokers, to engage in

leisure-time physical activity, or to get 7

to 8 hours of sleep. Prevalence of

maintaining a healthy body weight was

unrelated to poverty.

Marital status differences in health

characteristics were found for all ages,

but differences were not as clear or

consistent as for the other characteristics

studied. Overall, married adults

generally had lower rates of fair or poor

health, chronic health conditions,

impairments, and emergency room

visits, and higher rates of health care

utilization such as flu vaccinations and

dental care. Married adults also were

more likely to have engaged in leisuretime physical activity but less likely to

be lifetime nonsmokers compared with

formerly married adults.

In summary, results presented in

this report show differences among the

older age groups in terms of health

status, physical and social functioning,

health care access, and personal health

risk behaviors. Within these older age

groups, differences were found by

gender, race and Hispanic origin, marital

status, poverty status, and health

insurance coverage. In many cases,

subgroup differences noted for adults

aged 55–64 differed substantially from

those found for adults aged 65 and over.

These findings provide information that

can be used to identify subgroups of

older adults who may be at increased

risk of unfavorable health outcomes,

limited health care access, and unhealthy

personal health behaviors. Although

there is a need for increased

understanding of the causal mechanisms

underlying these differences, causal

inferences are not possible with the

NHIS cross-sectional design.

A discussion of trends in the health

of older U.S. adults is beyond the scope

of this report. However, readers

interested in examining changes over

time are encouraged to compare the

findings presented in this report with

those previously published for 2000–

2003 (6).

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5 and over who were in fair or poor health, and percentage with selected health conditions and impairments, by age and selected

ge annual, 2004–2007

Health status, condition, or impairment

Serious Lost all

Fair or psychological Heart Hearing Vision natural

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 

Population poor health distress Hypertension disease Diabetes impairment impairment teeth

Number in
 

thousands9 Percent10 (standard error)
 

........ 66,076 22.9 (0.28) 2.9 (0.11) 47.3 (0.32) 24.8 (0.27) 16.3 (0.23) 31.6 (0.31) 14.4 (0.26) 19.0 (0.28) 
 

........ 30,709 19.6 (0.40) 3.6 (0.20) 40.8 (0.48) 17.3 (0.37) 14.1 (0.35) 23.0 (0.43) 11.7 (0.34) 11.0 (0.31) 
 

........ 35,367 25.8 (0.38) 2.2 (0.12) 53.0 (0.41) 31.4 (0.38) 18.2 (0.32) 39.0 (0.42) 16.7 (0.34) 26.0 (0.40) 
 

........ 18,786 22.9 (0.48) 2.1 (0.16) 50.8 (0.54) 26.8 (0.50) 19.2 (0.45) 30.9 (0.54) 13.5 (0.43) 22.0 (0.51) 
 ........ 12,601 28.1 (0.62) 2.4 (0.19) 55.7 (0.68) 35.3 (0.66) 18.2 (0.55) 43.7 (0.71) 18.3 (0.54) 29.1 (0.65) 
 

........ 3,980 32.1 (1.08) 2.4 (0.35) 54.3 (1.15) 40.7 (1.19) 13.0 (0.85) 62.1 (1.17) 26.9 (1.10) 35.6 (1.18) 
 

. . . . . . . . 14,772 19.2 (0.56) 2.7 (0.22) 42.0 (0.70) 19.9 (0.57) 15.5 (0.51) 30.2 (0.68) 10.2 (0.44) 11.1 (0.43)

. . . . . . . . 15,937 19.9 (0.53) 4.4 (0.31) 39.7 (0.64) 14.8 (0.45) 12.9 (0.46) 16.4 (0.50) 13.1 (0.46) 11.0 (0.43)

........ 23,654 16.9 (0.44) 3.4 (0.23) 39.1 (0.55) 18.0 (0.43) 12.3 (0.39) 25.2 (0.51) 11.3 (0.40) 11.1 (0.37)........ 2,964 33.8 (1.32) 4.2 (0.56) 57.2 (1.39) 17.0 (0.99) 22.1 (1.15) 15.2 (0.96) 14.8 (0.96) 12.7 (0.90)

........ 1,068 14.7 (2.12) 2.4 (0.70) 33.5 (2.50) 9.3 (1.61) 14.4 (2.11) 10.2 (1.40) 7.6 (1.45) 9.3 (1.67)

........ 2,449 28.9 (1.30) 4.6 (0.57) 39.0 (1.46) 13.3 (1.04) 20.0 (1.23) 16.0 (1.36) 12.6 (0.95) 8.0 (0.81)

. . . . . . . . 2,661 50.1 (1.50) 10.6 (0.91) 53.8 (1.45) 26.0 (1.32) 21.8 (1.18) 27.5 (1.41) 21.3 (1.23) 21.8 (1.26) 
 

........ 4,557 37.9 (1.28) 8.0 (0.73) 46.7 (1.23) 22.4 (1.11) 19.9 (1.07) 25.8 (1.30) 18.1 (1.00) 19.0 (1.08) 
 

........ 23,492 12.5 (0.38) 1.9 (0.19) 38.2 (0.55) 15.3 (0.40) 12.1 (0.38) 22.0 (0.51) 9.4 (0.37) 8.3 (0.33) 
 

........ 22,907 12.4 (0.38) 1.9 (0.18) 38.7 (0.56) 15.3 (0.41) 12.1 (0.39) 21.9 (0.49) 9.4 (0.37) 8.0 (0.32) 
 

. . . . . . . . 1,803 58.4 (1.71) 13.9 (1.27) 60.0 (1.67) 34.1 (1.72) 28.5 (1.56) 28.2 (1.62) 24.3 (1.47) 27.0 (1.54) 
 

. . . . . . . . 2,348 45.2 (1.76) 9.6 (1.12) 54.3 (1.68) 28.7 (1.56) 23.1 (1.36) 65.9 (1.69) 19.9 (1.33) 20.8 (1.41) 
 

........ 3,526 28.8 (1.20) 5.7 (0.60) 36.7 (1.33) 14.0 (0.97) 14.3 (1.00) 20.9 (1.17) 15.4 (0.94) 15.8 (1.02) 
 

. . . . . . . . 21,195 17.0 (0.47) 2.8 (0.23) 39.9 (0.60) 17.0 (0.45) 13.4 (0.44) 23.9 (0.56) 10.4 (0.40) 10.0 (0.39)

. . . . . . . . 6,773 26.2 (0.78) 5.6 (0.41) 44.4 (0.84) 19.1 (0.71) 16.6 (0.61) 22.1 (0.70) 15.6 (0.61) 14.7 (0.59)

........ 1,650 23.5 (1.56) 5.3 (0.91) 38.4 (1.64) 12.8 (1.10) 14.7 (1.18) 17.5 (1.37) 12.5 (1.32) 9.4 (1.03)

. . . . . . . . 15,088 26.1 (0.56) 1.8 (0.16) 49.9 (0.65) 37.4 (0.63) 19.7 (0.51) 47.2 (0.66) 14.9 (0.51) 25.6 (0.59)

. . . . . . . . 20,278 25.6 (0.48) 2.6 (0.17) 55.2 (0.54) 27.0 (0.46) 17.0 (0.42) 32.8 (0.50) 18.0 (0.44) 26.4 (0.51)

........ 28,696 23.4 (0.41) 2.0 (0.13) 51.2 (0.46) 32.9 (0.44) 16.0 (0.36) 41.6 (0.48) 16.2 (0.37) 25.3 (0.45)........ 2,934 38.6 (1.15) 2.4 (0.32) 68.5 (1.07) 25.6 (1.02) 29.6 (1.03) 23.6 (1.06) 20.4 (0.93) 34.4 (1.11)

........ 989 22.0 (1.92) 1.5 (0.43) 52.8 (2.46) 20.6 (1.85) 19.8 (1.93) 30.1 (2.22) 12.7 (1.58) 20.7 (2.22)

........ 2,282 38.9 (1.40) 4.9 (0.64) 53.5 (1.44) 24.5 (1.16) 27.8 (1.34) 28.2 (1.27) 18.9 (1.23) 26.0 (1.27)

. . . . . . . . 3,699 43.3 (1.32) 5.0 (0.53) 56.8 (1.32) 33.7 (1.12) 22.9 (1.01) 36.1 (1.15) 23.5 (1.14) 39.5 (1.13)

........ 9,306 32.9 (0.79) 3.4 (0.29) 56.3 (0.82) 32.9 (0.86) 20.1 (0.71) 40.3 (0.80) 19.6 (0.70) 34.3 (0.83)

........ 22,362 20.0 (0.46) 1.3 (0.12) 50.9 (0.56) 30.4 (0.52) 16.6 (0.43) 38.9 (0.54) 14.4 (0.43) 20.4 (0.48)

National Health Statistics Reportsn Number 16n July 8, 2009 Page 13
5 and over who were in fair or poor health, and percentage with selected health conditions and impairments, by age and selected

ge annual, 2004–2007—Con.

Health status, condition, or impairment

Serious Lost all

Fair or psychological Heart Hearing Vision natural

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 

Population poor health distress Hypertension disease Diabetes impairment impairment teeth

Number in
 

thousands9 Percent10 (standard error)
 

........ 20,866 21.1 (0.47) 1.6 (0.13) 52.6 (0.55) 31.9 (0.50) 16.8 (0.41) 40.1 (0.53) 15.9 (0.42) 22.5 (0.49) 
 

. . . . . . . . 2,208 54.6 (1.52) 7.6 (0.80) 63.4 (1.38) 41.3 (1.44) 29.4 (1.33) 35.9 (1.40) 25.3 (1.27) 44.4 (1.49) 
 

........ 9,604 28.8 (0.69) 2.4 (0.22) 51.4 (0.77) 27.7 (0.70) 18.0 (0.63) 35.8 (0.81) 16.6 (0.63) 30.2 (0.75) 
 

. . . . . . . . 2,340 27.1 (1.52) 2.3 (0.50) 54.8 (1.63) 36.1 (1.64) 20.6 (1.35) 54.3 (1.65) 16.7 (1.21) 24.2 (1.40) 
 

. . . . . . . . 19,759 23.9 (0.54) 1.7 (0.16) 50.7 (0.59) 31.1 (0.54) 18.2 (0.46) 39.1 (0.61) 14.7 (0.46) 22.0 (0.54)

. . . . . . . . 13,848 28.4 (0.54) 3.0 (0.19) 56.8 (0.56) 32.3 (0.54) 18.3 (0.44) 39.6 (0.58) 19.5 (0.48) 32.0 (0.58)

........ 1,223 25.9 (1.60) 2.5 (0.57) 49.2 (1.79) 27.5 (1.58) 17.6 (1.47) 30.8 (1.68) 17.2 (1.38) 25.2 (1.59)

. . . . . . . . 8,620 22.9 (0.69) 1.8 (0.21) 48.9 (0.83) 32.7 (0.81) 20.5 (0.67) 40.1 (0.87) 11.7 (0.59) 21.7 (0.74)

. . . . . . . . 10,166 23.0 (0.64) 2.4 (0.23) 52.5 (0.75) 21.9 (0.65) 18.1 (0.60) 23.2 (0.63) 15.0 (0.59) 22.2 (0.68)

........ 14,706 20.1 (0.53) 1.9 (0.18) 48.5 (0.63) 28.2 (0.59) 16.8 (0.51) 33.6 (0.64) 12.5 (0.49) 21.5 (0.59)........ 1,791 36.8 (1.41) 2.4 (0.44) 67.9 (1.37) 23.6 (1.22) 29.9 (1.36) 18.4 (1.20) 19.0 (1.18) 28.8 (1.37)

........ 606 17.1 (2.16) *1.1 (0.49) 49.5 (3.21) 15.2 (2.22) 19.4 (2.52) 23.1 (2.89) 10.8 (1.95) 14.7 (2.26)

........ 1,397 35.1 (1.72) 4.8 (0.81) 52.4 (1.83) 21.0 (1.45) 29.1 (1.73) 20.8 (1.53) 16.0 (1.46) 19.4 (1.48)

. . . . . . . . 1,791 43.9 (1.73) 6.0 (0.80) 57.1 (1.88) 31.5 (1.57) 25.7 (1.47) 27.6 (1.63) 21.4 (1.47) 33.2 (1.72) 
 

........ 4,216 33.9 (1.14) 3.8 (0.46) 55.3 (1.22) 28.1 (1.09) 23.3 (1.10) 30.9 (1.10) 16.8 (0.95) 31.2 (1.08) 
 

........ 12,780 16.4 (0.55) 1.0 (0.14) 48.5 (0.73) 25.8 (0.64) 17.0 (0.57) 31.4 (0.68) 11.2 (0.51) 17.3 (0.59) 
 

........ 11,008 17.7 (0.60) 1.3 (0.16) 49.6 (0.74) 26.1 (0.66) 17.9 (0.59) 32.0 (0.71) 12.4 (0.54) 18.9 (0.63) 
 

. . . . . . . . 1,170 53.6 (2.20) 8.5 (1.23) 64.4 (1.83) 38.2 (1.88) 30.5 (1.80) 29.1 (1.87) 21.9 (1.57) 38.2 (1.99) 
 

........ 5,067 26.3 (0.97) 2.3 (0.31) 50.0 (1.06) 24.4 (0.92) 18.6 (0.83) 27.4 (0.99) 13.7 (0.82) 25.0 (0.98) 
 

. . . . . . . . 1,304 26.0 (1.90) 2.2 (0.57) 54.8 (2.20) 34.2 (2.18) 22.6 (1.78) 61.2 (2.11) 14.1 (1.40) 22.2 (1.81) 
 

. . . . . . . . 12,273 20.8 (0.62) 1.7 (0.20) 49.0 (0.75) 26.8 (0.68) 18.3 (0.57) 32.5 (0.73) 12.4 (0.55) 19.5 (0.65)

. . . . . . . . 5,453 26.8 (0.79) 3.2 (0.31) 55.4 (0.85) 27.2 (0.77) 21.0 (0.71) 28.6 (0.78) 15.6 (0.66) 27.4 (0.81)

........ 699 26.7 (2.13) *2.4 (0.77) 50.1 (2.38) 26.2 (2.12) 21.3 (2.07) 21.3 (1.90) 14.8 (1.70) 23.0 (2.06)

. . . . . . . . 5,108 29.1 (0.98) 1.8 (0.29) 51.7 (1.09) 42.7 (1.14) 19.4 (0.87) 53.5 (1.14) 16.9 (0.90) 29.9 (1.05)

. . . . . . . . 7,493 27.4 (0.77) 2.8 (0.25) 58.4 (0.86) 30.3 (0.76) 17.4 (0.67) 37.0 (0.85) 19.3 (0.70) 28.6 (0.78)

........ 10,527 25.8 (0.67) 2.2 (0.20) 54.4 (0.76) 36.7 (0.74) 16.2 (0.59) 45.4 (0.79) 17.8 (0.59) 27.7 (0.72)........ 900 41.2 (2.02) 2.3 (0.55) 70.6 (1.86) 28.0 (1.90) 30.9 (1.87) 28.8 (1.87) 22.1 (1.63) 42.2 (1.92)

........ 290 27.2 (4.03) *1.8 (0.84) 56.7 (4.03) 27.1 (3.60) 21.9 (3.43) 38.0 (3.73) 13.7 (2.72) 27.5 (4.08)

........ 729 43.6 (2.45) 5.0 (1.09) 54.7 (2.38) 28.7 (2.18) 27.6 (2.29) 37.5 (2.47) 22.6 (2.10) 32.8 (2.37)

Page 14 National Health Statistics Reportsn Number 16n July 8, 2009
5 and over who were in fair or poor health, and percentage with selected health conditions and impairments, by age and selected

ge annual, 2004–2007—Con.

Health status, condition, or impairment

Serious Lost all

Fair or psychological Heart Hearing Vision natural

Population poor health1 distress2 Hypertension3 disease4 Diabetes5 impairment6 impairment7 teeth8

Number in
 

thousands9 Percent10 (standard error)
 

. . . . . . . . 1,389 43.3 (2.15) 4.0 (0.72) 58.4 (2.40) 34.7 (1.74) 22.9 (1.57) 39.4 (1.87) 23.5 (1.79) 42.2 (1.90) 
 

........ 3,833 31.6 (1.11) 3.0 (0.41) 57.3 (1.34) 35.9 (1.33) 19.0 (0.95) 42.7 (1.27) 20.1 (1.05) 35.9 (1.45) 
 

........ 7,378 23.4 (0.83) 1.7 (0.23) 54.4 (0.93) 35.2 (0.96) 16.9 (0.75) 45.0 (0.94) 16.4 (0.68) 23.1 (0.87) 
 

........ 7,522 23.7 (0.74) 1.9 (0.22) 55.9 (0.88) 36.8 (0.88) 16.5 (0.67) 45.0 (0.89) 17.7 (0.69) 24.8 (0.80) 
 

........ 793 54.2 (2.43) 6.4 (1.05) 61.8 (2.40) 42.9 (2.46) 29.6 (2.33) 41.0 (2.51) 28.7 (2.22) 49.4 (2.42) 
 

........ 3,350 31.4 (1.22) 2.5 (0.37) 54.1 (1.30) 30.1 (1.20) 19.5 (1.08) 39.2 (1.32) 17.3 (1.00) 34.6 (1.26) 
 

........ 862 28.9 (2.58) *2.3 (1.00) 55.8 (2.69) 37.5 (2.67) 18.6 (2.23) 47.3 (2.82) 18.3 (2.05) 26.8 (2.37) 
 

........ 6,327 27.4 (0.94) 1.8 (0.24) 53.3 (1.02) 36.6 (1.02) 18.6 (0.86) 46.8 (1.08) 16.5 (0.80) 25.5 (0.95)

........ 5,737 29.1 (0.84) 3.0 (0.30) 58.8 (0.89) 34.2 (0.84) 18.2 (0.70) 40.5 (0.88) 19.7 (0.73) 33.3 (0.88)

........ 398 24.3 (2.62) *3.0 (0.98) 50.2 (3.10) 28.1 (2.66) 15.4 (2.44) 40.8 (3.17) 22.4 (2.70) 27.0 (2.76)

. . . . . . . . 1,361 35.3 (2.08) 1.8 (0.49) 49.6 (2.04) 47.3 (2.04) 15.6 (1.61) 69.0 (1.91) 28.0 (2.00) 34.2 (2.00)

. . . . . . . . 2,619 30.5 (1.32) 2.7 (0.45) 56.7 (1.37) 37.2 (1.36) 11.7 (0.96) 58.5 (1.40) 26.3 (1.28) 36.3 (1.43)

........ 3,463 30.2 (1.15) 2.3 (0.38) 53.0 (1.25) 41.7 (1.29) 12.0 (0.91) 64.2 (1.25) 27.0 (1.20) 34.0 (1.28)

........ 243 43.0 (3.94) *2.5 (1.06) 65.2 (3.59) 31.4 (3.66) 22.4 (3.26) 42.7 (3.92) 25.1 (3.44) 46.3 (3.85)

........ 92 37.6 (6.46) † 62.7 (7.13) 35.0 (6.97) *15.4 (5.84) 51.1 (7.25) 22.1 (5.88) 38.6 (7.39)

........ 156 52.0 (5.95) *4.5 (1.95) 58.1 (4.91) 35.8 (4.92) 16.5 (4.32) 51.4 (5.99) 27.5 (4.86) 52.6 (6.02)

. . . . . . . . 519 40.9 (2.89) *4.1 (1.43) 51.6 (3.40) 38.7 (3.06) 13.5 (2.26) 56.9 (3.12) 30.8 (3.37) 53.7 (3.57) 
 

........ 1,257 33.3 (1.92) 2.7 (0.61) 56.1 (2.15) 39.7 (2.45) 12.9 (1.34) 64.5 (2.20) 27.3 (1.86) 39.5 (1.91) 
 

........ 2,204 29.4 (1.50) 1.8 (0.41) 53.8 (1.72) 41.8 (1.74) 13.0 (1.28) 61.9 (1.77) 25.7 (1.67) 29.2 (1.60) 
 

........ 2,335 29.0 (1.40) 1.9 (0.39) 56.2 (1.49) 43.1 (1.54) 12.9 (1.12) 62.6 (1.46) 26.4 (1.42) 32.0 (1.43) 
 

........ 245 60.6 (4.14) *6.9 (2.12) 64.3 (3.88) 50.9 (4.32) 23.3 (3.87) 51.8 (4.29) 30.3 (3.71) 57.4 (4.29) 
 

........ 1,188 32.7 (1.93) 2.0 (0.52) 49.3 (2.15) 34.6 (2.15) 11.2 (1.38) 62.7 (2.25) 27.1 (1.99) 39.9 (2.34) 
 

........ 174 26.9 (5.30) † 49.8 (5.53) 43.5 (5.49) 15.7 (4.68) 37.1 (5.25) 29.0 (5.21) 25.6 (4.52) 
 

........ 1,159 37.4 (2.28) 2.4 (0.62) 54.6 (2.37) 47.1 (2.49) 14.5 (1.71) 67.7 (2.46) 28.7 (2.28) 29.6 (2.17)

........ 2,658 30.0 (1.25) 2.4 (0.43) 55.1 (1.32) 38.4 (1.34) 12.9 (0.97) 60.2 (1.37) 26.8 (1.26) 38.5 (1.38)

........ 127 26.6 (5.12) † 40.8 (5.23) 32.7 (4.93) *4.3 (1.97) 51.7 (5.22) 14.5 (3.56) 31.3 (5.40)

30% and less than or equal to 50% and should be used with caution, as they do not meet standards of reliability or precision.
 

an 50% and is not shown.
 

t name’s] health in general is excellent, very good, good, fair or poor?’’ This information was obtained during the family interview and therefore could have been proxy reported.
 

x questions: ‘‘During the past 30 days, how often did you feel. . . [so sad nothing could cheer you up; nervous; restless or fidgety; hopeless; that everything was an effort; worthless]?’’ Response
 

‘some of the time,’’ ‘‘a little of the time,’’ and ‘‘none of the time.’’ Score for each item ranged from zero (none of the time) to 4 (all of the time). Unknowns for individual items were assigned a score of zero
 

d as a total psychological distress score of 13 or higher for the six items combined (44).
 

ey had hypertension or high blood pressure.
 

at they had coronary heart disease, angina pectoris, heart attack, or any other heart condition or disease.
 

National Health Statistics Reportsn Number 16n July 8, 2009 Page 15
y a doctor or other health professional that you had diabetes or sugar diabetes?’’ (excludes during pregnancy). Responses of ‘‘borderline’’ were treated as unknown and excluded from the analysis.
 

ribes your hearing without a hearing aid: good, a little trouble, a lot of trouble, deaf?’’ Adults who responded ‘‘a little trouble,’’ ‘‘a lot of trouble,’’ or ‘‘deaf’’ were classified as having hearing impairment.
 

eeing, even when wearing glasses or contact lenses?’’ Adults who responded ‘‘yes’’ were classified as having vision impairment.
 

r and lower natural (permanent) teeth?’’
 

denominators when calculating percentages (see ‘‘Technical Notes’’ section).
 

anic origin may be of any race. Other race categories are not shown separately due to small sample sizes.
 

U.S. Census Bureau’s poverty thresholds for the previous calendar year. Poor persons are those with family incomes below the poverty threshold. Near poor persons had incomes of 100% to less than
 

incomes that were 200% of the poverty threshold or greater.
 

usive categories. Persons with more than one type of health insurance were assigned to the first appropriate category in the hierarchy. Persons under age 65 and those aged 65 and over were classified
 

age in the older population. The category ‘‘private’’ includes persons who had any type of private coverage either alone or in combination with other coverage. For example, for persons aged 65 and over,
 

in combination with Medicare. The category ‘‘uninsured’’ includes persons who had no coverage as well as those who had only Indian Health Service coverage or had only a private plan that paid for
 

(see ‘‘Technical Notes’’ section). The category ‘‘uninsured’’ is not shown separately for adults aged 65 and over because only about 1% of this age group lacks coverage.
 

ouse); ‘‘formerly married’’ (widowed, divorced, separated); and ‘‘never married.’’ Adults living with a partner are not shown separately due to small sample size.
 

sample of the civilian noninstitutionalized population.
 

Page 16 National Health Statistics Reportsn Number 16n July 8, 2009
d over and percentage (with standard errors) who had some difficulty with physical or social functioning, by selected characteristics:

2007

Physical and social activities that are at least somewhat difficult1

Pushing or

Walking Walking up Standing Sitting for Stooping Carrying pulling large

Population 1/4 mile 10 steps for 2 hours 2 hours or bending Reaching Grasping 10 pounds objects Shopping Socializing Relaxing

Number in
 

housands2 Percent3 (standard error)
 

66,076 25.0 (0.30) 19.4 (0.27) 27.6 (0.30) 10.7 (0.21) 30.3 (0.32) 11.0 (0.22) 9.4 (0.20) 15.2 (0.24) 20.9 (0.29) 13.3 (0.23) 9.7 (0.20) 4.1 (0.13)
 

30,709 17.3 (0.38) 13.4 (0.34) 20.1 (0.40) 10.7 (0.30) 23.4 (0.44) 8.7 (0.30) 7.5 (0.26) 11.0 (0.31) 15.5 (0.37) 9.6 (0.30) 7.0 (0.27) 3.5 (0.19)
 35,367 31.9 (0.43) 24.7 (0.38) 34.4 (0.44) 10.8 (0.27) 36.4 (0.42) 13.1 (0.30) 11.1 (0.27) 19.1 (0.34) 26.0 (0.40) 16.6 (0.33) 12.2 (0.29) 4.6 (0.18)
 

18,786 23.9 (0.51) 18.2 (0.46) 26.3 (0.53) 9.9 (0.34) 30.7 (0.54) 10.0 (0.34) 8.3 (0.31) 13.5 (0.39) 19.7 (0.47) 11.6 (0.38) 8.1 (0.32) 3.3 (0.20)
 

12,601 37.3 (0.71) 28.6 (0.64) 39.6 (0.70) 11.2 (0.44) 39.9 (0.69) 14.9 (0.49) 12.9 (0.47) 22.2 (0.58) 29.5 (0.69) 19.2 (0.57) 13.9 (0.49) 5.2 (0.30)
 

3,980 56.1 (1.26) 45.2 (1.26) 59.3 (1.22) 13.8 (0.87) 53.1 (1.23) 22.2 (1.06) 18.6 (0.97) 37.5 (1.24) 47.9 (1.31) 34.1 (1.19) 27.6 (1.18) 9.0 (0.73)
 

14,772 14.6 (0.51) 10.6 (0.46) 16.4 (0.53) 8.3 (0.38) 19.5 (0.57) 7.1 (0.38) 6.2 (0.35) 7.0 (0.36) 11.5 (0.46) 7.9 (0.39) 5.5 (0.31) 3.0 (0.24)15,937 19.9 (0.54) 16.0 (0.48) 23.5 (0.56) 12.9 (0.46) 27.0 (0.61) 10.2 (0.44) 8.7 (0.37) 14.7 (0.49) 19.2 (0.53) 11.2 (0.43) 8.4 (0.40) 4.0 (0.30)

23,654 16.8 (0.44) 12.4 (0.39) 19.7 (0.46) 10.6 (0.35) 23.3 (0.51) 8.4 (0.35) 7.1 (0.29) 10.0 (0.35) 14.8 (0.42) 9.4 (0.35) 6.7 (0.31) 3.5 (0.24)

2,964 25.6 (1.23) 22.9 (1.19) 26.7 (1.29) 12.1 (0.86) 29.0 (1.23) 12.0 (0.91) 10.3 (0.97) 16.8 (1.05) 21.1 (1.20) 13.3 (0.92) 9.9 (0.85) 4.5 (0.54)1,068 5.9 (1.24) 3.9 (1.03) 10.3 (2.01) 3.7 (0.97) 8.9 (1.82) 3.4 (0.84) 3.7 (0.87) 10.2 (1.99) 8.5 (1.45) 4.2 (1.16) *2.9 (0.91) †

2,449 16.5 (1.09) 15.0 (0.97) 19.1 (1.15) 12.0 (0.95) 22.4 (1.18) 10.1 (0.87) 8.8 (0.84) 14.0 (1.06) 17.4 (1.15) 9.8 (0.86) 7.6 (0.77) 3.2 (0.53)

2,661 40.5 (1.56) 35.8 (1.41) 42.2 (1.58) 24.7 (1.31) 44.5 (1.50) 21.4 (1.28) 18.2 (1.15) 29.4 (1.34) 36.7 (1.49) 24.8 (1.34) 19.1 (1.15) 10.7 (0.90)

4,557 31.1 (1.34) 26.9 (1.22) 34.9 (1.29) 18.2 (1.02) 37.2 (1.41) 15.9 (1.07) 12.9 (0.93) 21.8 (1.09) 28.8 (1.29) 19.4 (1.08) 14.1 (0.98) 6.9 (0.72)

23,492 12.1 (0.39) 8.4 (0.33) 14.8 (0.41) 7.7 (0.31) 18.4 (0.47) 5.9 (0.29) 5.2 (0.26) 6.9 (0.30) 10.7 (0.37) 6.1 (0.29) 4.4 (0.27) 2.0 (0.19)

22,907 12.0 (0.39) 8.3 (0.33) 14.7 (0.42) 7.5 (0.30) 18.5 (0.47) 5.8 (0.28) 5.0 (0.25) 6.7 (0.29) 10.6 (0.36) 5.8 (0.28) 4.2 (0.26) 2.0 (0.18)

1,803 52.2 (1.75) 47.5 (1.76) 56.8 (1.81) 33.1 (1.62) 57.9 (1.73) 29.2 (1.64) 23.3 (1.48) 41.7 (1.77) 49.6 (1.86) 37.2 (1.78) 29.1 (1.68) 13.9 (1.32)

2,348 41.0 (1.75) 35.0 (1.66) 44.2 (1.75) 24.4 (1.53) 45.3 (1.76) 21.4 (1.53) 16.7 (1.32) 27.9 (1.55) 38.2 (1.71) 28.1 (1.68) 20.0 (1.50) 9.9 (1.28)

3,526 19.9 (1.13) 15.6 (1.00) 21.2 (1.12) 11.5 (0.85) 23.7 (1.11) 9.3 (0.78) 9.4 (0.77) 12.8 (0.87) 17.2 (1.03) 9.5 (0.81) 6.8 (0.70) 3.9 (0.52)

21,195 14.9 (0.45) 11.0 (0.40) 17.7 (0.48) 9.6 (0.37) 21.2 (0.53) 7.8 (0.36) 6.3 (0.30) 9.3 (0.37) 13.6 (0.44) 8.2 (0.35) 5.8 (0.31) 3.0 (0.23)

6,773 24.0 (0.73) 20.0 (0.66) 26.8 (0.78) 14.6 (0.60) 30.0 (0.77) 11.5 (0.56) 11.0 (0.57) 15.9 (0.62) 21.4 (0.70) 13.7 (0.60) 10.3 (0.55) 4.7 (0.39)

1,650 20.0 (1.50) 17.2 (1.40) 22.2 (1.53) 9.5 (1.01) 23.8 (1.51) 10.0 (1.11) 8.3 (1.11) 13.4 (1.21) 17.7 (1.44) 12.1 (1.34) 9.8 (1.21) 4.4 (0.87)

15,088 26.9 (0.60) 19.2 (0.52) 29.7 (0.64) 9.0 (0.38) 31.3 (0.62) 10.5 (0.42) 8.9 (0.37) 12.2 (0.44) 18.1 (0.53) 12.6 (0.46) 9.9 (0.41) 4.0 (0.26)20,278 35.8 (0.56) 28.9 (0.51) 38.0 (0.54) 12.2 (0.35) 40.3 (0.53) 15.0 (0.39) 12.7 (0.37) 24.3 (0.46) 32.3 (0.54) 19.6 (0.44) 13.9 (0.39) 5.1 (0.23)

28,696 31.4 (0.49) 23.5 (0.43) 34.2 (0.51) 10.2 (0.31) 36.4 (0.47) 12.3 (0.33) 10.8 (0.30) 17.6 (0.37) 24.9 (0.45) 16.1 (0.38) 11.5 (0.33) 4.2 (0.20)

2,934 39.2 (1.21) 34.1 (1.13) 39.9 (1.15) 12.9 (0.78) 38.9 (1.12) 17.0 (0.86) 12.9 (0.77) 26.7 (1.08) 32.8 (1.18) 21.0 (0.95) 17.5 (0.94) 7.0 (0.57)

989 22.5 (2.12) 18.5 (1.95) 27.7 (2.43) 11.0 (1.53) 26.5 (2.16) 12.7 (1.73) 8.0 (1.38) 20.9 (2.08) 23.3 (2.32) 12.2 (1.60) 9.7 (1.40) 4.3 (0.98)

2,282 31.8 (1.32) 29.7 (1.27) 33.3 (1.33) 14.2 (1.06) 35.8 (1.35) 16.8 (1.07) 13.5 (1.01) 25.8 (1.24) 31.7 (1.34) 19.0 (1.10) 14.7 (1.02) 7.1 (0.75)

3,699 46.4 (1.29) 40.8 (1.44) 49.3 (1.44) 18.7 (1.01) 49.7 (1.22) 20.8 (1.11) 17.5 (0.97) 32.8 (1.18) 41.8 (1.36) 28.2 (1.39) 22.1 (1.18) 9.5 (0.75)

9,306 39.1 (0.86) 31.4 (0.78) 41.5 (0.91) 13.4 (0.55) 42.7 (0.87) 16.4 (0.69) 13.8 (0.56) 24.6 (0.70) 32.3 (0.87) 21.6 (0.82) 15.9 (0.63) 6.1 (0.46)

22,362 26.8 (0.52) 19.5 (0.45) 29.2 (0.53) 8.4 (0.31) 31.7 (0.53) 10.4 (0.37) 9.0 (0.33) 14.6 (0.39) 21.0 (0.49) 12.8 (0.38) 9.2 (0.34) 3.3 (0.21)

National Health Statistics Reportsn Number 16n July 8, 2009 Page 17
d over and percentage (with standard errors) who had some difficulty with physical or social functioning, by selected characteristics:

2007—Con.

Physical and social activities that are at least somewhat difficult1

Pushing or

Walking Walking up Standing Sitting for Stooping Carrying pulling large

Population 1/4 mile 10 steps for 2 hours 2 hours or bending Reaching Grasping 10 pounds objects Shopping Socializing Relaxing

Number in
 

housands2 Percent3 (standard error)
 

20,866 29.0 (0.55) 20.9 (0.47) 31.6 (0.57) 9.1 (0.33) 34.6 (0.53) 10.9 (0.34) 9.5 (0.31) 15.7 (0.40) 22.7 (0.49) 14.3 (0.39) 10.0 (0.34) 3.4 (0.21)
 

2,208 55.2 (1.56) 50.4 (1.56) 58.2 (1.50) 22.9 (1.26) 57.3 (1.49) 28.2 (1.31) 21.1 (1.18) 45.9 (1.63) 51.4 (1.67) 37.2 (1.47) 29.9 (1.36) 12.4 (0.91)
 

9,604 33.1 (0.77) 27.0 (0.69) 35.3 (0.77) 11.5 (0.48) 35.7 (0.78) 14.3 (0.56) 11.9 (0.52) 21.1 (0.68) 27.9 (0.75) 17.2 (0.63) 13.1 (0.55) 5.2 (0.35)
 

2,340 32.6 (1.62) 25.9 (1.50) 35.3 (1.59) 11.5 (1.03) 36.4 (1.62) 12.7 (1.09) 13.8 (1.14) 17.5 (1.23) 25.7 (1.49) 16.5 (1.23) 12.6 (1.13) 5.4 (0.73)
 

19,759 26.8 (0.58) 19.8 (0.52) 29.3 (0.60) 9.6 (0.37) 32.6 (0.58) 10.8 (0.38) 9.6 (0.35) 14.2 (0.42) 20.3 (0.52) 13.2 (0.44) 9.2 (0.37) 3.9 (0.25)
 13,848 39.7 (0.60) 32.1 (0.57) 42.0 (0.61) 12.5 (0.38) 41.8 (0.58) 16.6 (0.46) 13.3 (0.41) 26.4 (0.55) 34.5 (0.61) 21.9 (0.50) 16.7 (0.47) 5.5 (0.27)
 

1,223 30.3 (1.79) 22.8 (1.60) 34.2 (1.84) 10.3 (1.12) 34.5 (1.80) 10.2 (1.09) 10.9 (1.11) 17.5 (1.39) 25.2 (1.68) 14.2 (1.24) 11.3 (1.12) 4.7 (0.75)
 

8,620 19.9 (0.69) 14.1 (0.59) 22.7 (0.72) 8.1 (0.45) 26.0 (0.74) 8.3 (0.50) 6.8 (0.42) 9.1 (0.47) 13.7 (0.57) 8.9 (0.49) 6.9 (0.44) 2.8 (0.28)

10,166 27.2 (0.71) 21.7 (0.65) 29.4 (0.70) 11.4 (0.48) 34.7 (0.75) 11.4 (0.49) 9.6 (0.44) 17.2 (0.55) 25.1 (0.68) 13.8 (0.53) 9.1 (0.44) 3.7 (0.28)

14,706 23.1 (0.60) 16.8 (0.52) 25.7 (0.61) 9.5 (0.39) 30.8 (0.63) 9.4 (0.40) 7.9 (0.36) 12.0 (0.43) 18.6 (0.52) 11.3 (0.43) 7.5 (0.37) 3.0 (0.23)

1,791 32.3 (1.42) 28.5 (1.32) 33.5 (1.42) 10.9 (0.94) 33.8 (1.38) 13.4 (1.03) 10.2 (0.88) 21.0 (1.25) 26.5 (1.38) 15.1 (1.04) 12.1 (1.02) 4.4 (0.57)

606 11.2 (1.84) 9.5 (1.78) 19.5 (2.53) 9.6 (1.80) 18.4 (2.32) 4.5 (1.23) 3.9 (1.13) 13.2 (2.17) 13.8 (2.14) 5.7 (1.24) 4.8 (1.23) *1.8 (0.79)

1,397 24.0 (1.53) 21.9 (1.45) 26.0 (1.59) 12.0 (1.17) 29.0 (1.63) 12.8 (1.21) 11.1 (1.18) 19.0 (1.41) 24.9 (1.54) 12.9 (1.25) 10.1 (1.14) 5.4 (0.89)

1,791 40.2 (1.72) 35.5 (1.57) 43.0 (1.71) 17.5 (1.40) 44.6 (1.70) 18.6 (1.42) 14.9 (1.19) 28.5 (1.55) 37.3 (1.72) 23.0 (1.54) 16.9 (1.31) 8.2 (0.98)

4,216 31.6 (1.16) 24.5 (0.99) 33.7 (1.21) 12.8 (0.89) 37.1 (1.19) 14.1 (0.88) 11.9 (0.74) 19.4 (0.92) 26.6 (1.08) 16.1 (0.98) 11.6 (0.80) 4.4 (0.52)

12,780 19.2 (0.59) 13.8 (0.53) 21.6 (0.61) 7.9 (0.41) 26.7 (0.65) 7.5 (0.40) 6.2 (0.34) 9.5 (0.43) 15.2 (0.52) 8.6 (0.42) 5.8 (0.36) 2.3 (0.22)

11,008 20.6 (0.65) 14.8 (0.58) 23.2 (0.68) 8.3 (0.43) 29.1 (0.70) 7.9 (0.40) 6.7 (0.37) 10.4 (0.46) 16.5 (0.58) 9.4 (0.45) 6.1 (0.38) 2.3 (0.24)

1,170 49.1 (2.10) 43.8 (2.09) 53.2 (2.06) 22.2 (1.73) 52.9 (2.08) 25.3 (1.64) 18.5 (1.55) 39.9 (2.12) 46.5 (2.23) 32.3 (1.89) 25.7 (1.78) 10.4 (1.12)

5,067 24.9 (0.95) 19.4 (0.85) 26.7 (1.00) 10.1 (0.63) 29.4 (0.98) 11.2 (0.70) 9.1 (0.64) 14.7 (0.79) 20.6 (0.90) 11.5 (0.75) 8.5 (0.65) 3.6 (0.40)

1,304 26.3 (1.94) 19.3 (1.74) 29.0 (1.94) 11.4 (1.38) 31.4 (2.02) 9.5 (1.18) 10.4 (1.22) 13.8 (1.38) 21.8 (1.79) 12.1 (1.36) 8.3 (1.10) 3.9 (0.78)

12,273 21.1 (0.66) 15.4 (0.61) 23.5 (0.69) 9.1 (0.44) 28.6 (0.72) 9.0 (0.44) 7.6 (0.40) 11.1 (0.48) 16.6 (0.58) 10.3 (0.49) 7.0 (0.41) 2.9 (0.27)

5,453 29.8 (0.84) 23.9 (0.76) 32.1 (0.86) 11.6 (0.57) 35.3 (0.83) 12.3 (0.61) 9.9 (0.51) 18.7 (0.73) 26.5 (0.82) 14.3 (0.63) 10.4 (0.56) 4.0 (0.32)

699 24.5 (2.09) 19.9 (1.93) 29.5 (2.16) 8.9 (1.36) 29.7 (2.18) 9.7 (1.50) 10.0 (1.44) 15.2 (1.64) 20.4 (1.99) 11.2 (1.46) 8.0 (1.20) 3.6 (0.92)

5,108 33.3 (1.11) 23.5 (0.98) 36.0 (1.12) 9.4 (0.66) 35.8 (1.15) 12.4 (0.74) 11.0 (0.68) 14.4 (0.86) 21.4 (0.99) 15.3 (0.87) 11.7 (0.76) 4.9 (0.49)

7,493 40.2 (0.88) 32.1 (0.84) 42.1 (0.89) 12.5 (0.56) 42.7 (0.84) 16.6 (0.65) 14.3 (0.63) 27.6 (0.79) 35.3 (0.90) 21.8 (0.73) 15.4 (0.63) 5.5 (0.38)

10,527 36.1 (0.79) 26.7 (0.72) 38.8 (0.80) 10.3 (0.48) 39.2 (0.77) 13.6 (0.53) 12.4 (0.52) 20.3 (0.63) 27.8 (0.76) 17.9 (0.64) 12.5 (0.53) 4.6 (0.33)

900 46.5 (2.15) 39.7 (2.06) 47.5 (2.06) 15.5 (1.40) 45.2 (2.06) 20.2 (1.60) 16.0 (1.47) 32.1 (1.93) 40.2 (2.15) 26.7 (1.85) 23.3 (1.78) 9.6 (1.18)290 36.6 (4.58) 31.5 (4.47) 36.2 (4.95) 11.3 (2.84) 34.5 (4.52) 25.0 (4.18) 15.7 (3.59) 29.1 (4.48) 32.5 (4.80) 19.8 (3.77) 16.5 (3.40) *7.3 (2.45)

729 42.2 (2.50) 39.4 (2.47) 42.4 (2.49) 16.8 (2.01) 43.5 (2.44) 20.7 (2.08) 16.7 (2.01) 33.7 (2.55) 38.8 (2.52) 26.1 (2.14) 19.7 (2.00) 8.6 (1.39)

Page 18 National Health Statistics Reportsn Number 16n July 8, 2009
d over and percentage (with standard errors) who had some difficulty with physical or social functioning, by selected characteristics:

2007—Con.

Physical and social activities that are at least somewhat difficult1

Pushing or

Walking Walking up Standing Sitting for Stooping Carrying pulling large

Population 1/4 mile 10 steps for 2 hours 2 hours or bending Reaching Grasping 10 pounds objects Shopping Socializing Relaxing

Number in
 

housands2 Percent3 (standard error)
 

1,389 47.6 (2.17) 42.2 (2.37) 51.4 (2.22) 19.8 (1.73) 52.0 (2.14) 20.6 (1.61) 18.1 (1.67) 33.9 (2.10) 43.1 (2.48) 28.8 (2.05) 23.2 (1.86) 9.6 (1.20)
 

3,833 42.2 (1.28) 35.0 (1.24) 45.4 (1.30) 14.0 (0.87) 45.5 (1.22) 17.1 (1.05) 14.3 (0.95) 26.4 (1.14) 34.1 (1.27) 23.8 (1.20) 17.1 (1.00) 6.8 (0.70)
 

7,378 33.0 (0.92) 22.8 (0.82) 34.5 (0.93) 8.2 (0.50) 34.8 (0.93) 12.7 (0.68) 11.3 (0.62) 17.9 (0.78) 24.7 (0.91) 15.1 (0.69) 10.6 (0.60) 3.6 (0.36)
 7,522 34.6 (0.90) 24.0 (0.78) 37.0 (0.89) 9.7 (0.55) 37.6 (0.85) 12.9 (0.61) 11.2 (0.57) 18.4 (0.67) 26.0 (0.83) 16.5 (0.69) 11.4 (0.57) 4.1 (0.37)
 

793 59.7 (2.68) 56.2 (2.59) 61.0 (2.55) 22.5 (2.13) 60.5 (2.48) 27.3 (2.17) 22.7 (2.01) 49.5 (2.82) 53.2 (2.78) 39.1 (2.56) 31.0 (2.40) 13.2 (1.61)
 

3,350 37.8 (1.35) 31.5 (1.24) 40.3 (1.30) 11.5 (0.81) 39.9 (1.29) 15.7 (0.95) 13.0 (0.88) 24.4 (1.18) 31.5 (1.30) 20.2 (1.06) 14.8 (0.94) 5.2 (0.54)
 

862 38.6 (2.80) 32.6 (2.71) 40.8 (2.75) 12.5 (1.77) 41.5 (2.83) 16.7 (2.07) 18.5 (2.32) 22.2 (2.31) 30.6 (2.67) 20.6 (2.24) 17.2 (2.17) 7.5 (1.43)
 

6,327 34.0 (1.04) 25.1 (0.93) 36.6 (1.06) 9.9 (0.65) 37.4 (1.03) 13.2 (0.71) 12.0 (0.67) 18.0 (0.82) 24.1 (0.97) 16.3 (0.85) 11.8 (0.70) 5.0 (0.46)
 

5,737 41.0 (0.94) 32.7 (0.89) 42.9 (0.94) 12.6 (0.62) 42.3 (0.91) 17.0 (0.70) 13.9 (0.65) 27.0 (0.86) 35.3 (0.96) 22.5 (0.82) 16.4 (0.73) 5.5 (0.42)
 

398 37.6 (3.32) 24.7 (2.83) 40.4 (3.49) 11.8 (2.06) 39.7 (3.22) 11.7 (1.93) 11.4 (1.95) 18.8 (2.39) 31.2 (3.03) 16.4 (2.22) 13.2 (2.10) 4.3 (1.14)
 

1,361 49.3 (2.20) 37.2 (2.10) 53.5 (2.18) 12.9 (1.43) 48.5 (2.12) 16.9 (1.65) 14.8 (1.52) 24.0 (1.88) 35.2 (2.17) 27.2 (1.96) 23.1 (1.92) 8.6 (1.21)

2,619 59.8 (1.48) 49.4 (1.53) 62.4 (1.42) 14.3 (1.06) 55.6 (1.47) 25.0 (1.33) 20.6 (1.26) 45.0 (1.56) 55.3 (1.56) 37.7 (1.49) 29.9 (1.47) 9.2 (0.90)

3,463 55.3 (1.36) 43.9 (1.36) 59.0 (1.31) 12.9 (0.93) 52.4 (1.34) 20.7 (1.12) 18.5 (1.04) 35.4 (1.33) 46.3 (1.40) 32.7 (1.28) 26.5 (1.26) 8.1 (0.76)

243 66.2 (4.21) 56.5 (4.36) 62.1 (3.91) 18.2 (3.19) 54.5 (3.90) 32.6 (3.98) 21.6 (3.47) 52.4 (4.52) 56.0 (4.58) 46.4 (4.45) 39.0 (4.47) 16.9 (3.26)

92 57.9 (7.74) 38.2 (7.13) 61.4 (7.80) *19.5 (5.90) 56.4 (7.18) 27.4 (7.17) *10.3 (3.66) 50.8 (7.98) 66.9 (9.96) 35.3 (6.69) 22.4 (6.54) *11.7 (4.61)

156 56.5 (5.27) 58.0 (5.18) 61.4 (5.24) 23.5 (4.58) 62.5 (4.88) 35.3 (5.43) 20.3 (4.22) 54.9 (5.30) 64.0 (4.98) 45.5 (6.44) 36.4 (5.95) 16.1 (4.02)

519 66.1 (3.26) 56.6 (3.68) 68.0 (3.64) 19.6 (2.72) 62.2 (3.15) 29.2 (3.23) 24.8 (3.33) 46.3 (3.41) 55.5 (3.76) 46.0 (3.56) 39.0 (3.45) 13.4 (2.57)

1,257 56.8 (2.36) 44.5 (2.58) 57.3 (2.37) 13.7 (1.44) 53.4 (2.53) 22.4 (1.92) 18.4 (1.56) 37.9 (2.15) 48.1 (2.30) 34.7 (2.28) 27.4 (2.04) 9.3 (1.36)

2,204 53.4 (1.79) 43.0 (1.78) 58.5 (1.72) 12.6 (1.19) 50.9 (1.86) 20.5 (1.49) 17.3 (1.43) 35.3 (1.68) 46.1 (1.90) 31.1 (1.69) 25.2 (1.65) 7.9 (0.98)2,335 53.8 (1.61) 41.4 (1.57) 56.7 (1.57) 10.7 (0.98) 52.1 (1.61) 19.0 (1.26) 16.7 (1.14) 34.1 (1.52) 44.6 (1.63) 31.7 (1.48) 25.0 (1.43) 6.4 (0.70)

245 71.0 (4.29) 64.0 (4.51) 75.1 (4.25) 27.0 (4.00) 67.7 (4.29) 45.0 (4.61) 28.9 (4.25) 66.0 (4.52) 72.5 (4.27) 59.1 (4.65) 49.1 (4.95) 19.9 (3.63)

1,188 57.2 (2.31) 48.6 (2.28) 60.9 (2.25) 17.8 (1.82) 51.7 (2.33) 24.1 (2.06) 20.6 (1.95) 40.8 (2.39) 52.0 (2.53) 34.8 (2.23) 29.2 (2.19) 12.2 (1.69)

174 52.5 (6.09) 44.6 (5.99) 59.7 (5.71) *7.6 (2.58) 50.6 (5.82) 17.7 (4.36) 15.6 (4.47) 24.7 (4.98) 33.0 (5.92) 29.7 (5.56) 24.2 (5.12) †

1,159 50.2 (2.56) 38.7 (2.46) 54.6 (2.59) 12.5 (1.67) 50.3 (2.52) 17.7 (1.88) 17.8 (1.83) 28.2 (2.28) 40.8 (2.64) 27.8 (2.28) 20.2 (2.06) 8.9 (1.43)

2,658 59.4 (1.47) 48.8 (1.48) 61.9 (1.41) 14.3 (1.03) 54.6 (1.37) 24.9 (1.30) 19.2 (1.14) 42.3 (1.48) 51.9 (1.51) 37.3 (1.47) 30.9 (1.45) 8.9 (0.87)

127 40.6 (5.46) 33.1 (4.94) 42.4 (5.30) *13.3 (4.38) 44.8 (5.46) *8.4 (2.70) 13.7 (3.36) 27.2 (5.34) 34.8 (5.43) 26.0 (4.85) 24.3 (4.97) *12.2 (3.72)

30% and less than or equal to 50% and should be used with caution, as they do not meet standards of reliability or precision.
 

an 50% and is not shown.
 

they experienced difficulty performing one or more of the nine physical and three social activities by themselves, and without using any special equipment. The activities were walking one-quarter of one
 

resting; standing for 2 hours; sitting for 2 hours; stooping, bending, or kneeling; reaching over one’s head; using one’s fingers to grasp or handle small objects; lifting or carrying a 10-pound object (such
 

ect (such as a living room chair); going out to things like shopping, movies, or sporting events; participating in social activities such as visiting friends, attending clubs and meetings, going to parties; doing
 

ng television, sewing, listening to music). The response categories consisted of ‘‘not at all difficult,’’ ‘‘only a little difficult,’’ ‘‘somewhat difficult,’’ ‘‘very difficult,’’ ‘‘can’t do at all,’’ or ‘‘do not do this activity.’’
 

‘somewhat difficult,’’ ‘‘very difficult,’’ or ‘‘can’t do at all.’’
 

National Health Statistics Reportsn Number 16n July 8, 2009 Page 19
denominators when calculating percentages (see ‘‘Technical Notes’’ section).
 

nic origin may be of any race. Other race categories are not shown separately due to small sample sizes.
 

.S. Census Bureau’s poverty thresholds for the previous calendar year. Poor persons are those with family incomes below the poverty threshold. Near poor persons had incomes of 100% to less than
 

incomes that were 200% of the poverty threshold or greater.
 

usive categories. Persons with more than one type of health insurance were assigned to the first appropriate category in the hierarchy. Persons under age 65 and those aged 65 and over were classified
 

age in the older population. The category ‘‘private’’ includes persons who had any type of private coverage either alone or in combination with other coverage. For example, for persons aged 65 and over,
 

in combination with Medicare. The category ‘‘uninsured’’ includes persons who had no coverage as well as those who had only Indian Health Service coverage or had only a private plan that paid for
 

(see ‘‘Technical Notes’’ section). The category ‘‘uninsured’’ is not shown separately for adults aged 65 and over because only about 1% of this age group lacks coverage.
 

sample of the civilian noninstitutionalized population.
 

Page 20 National Health Statistics Reportsn Number 16n July 8, 2009
5 and over according to selected measures of health care access and utilization, by age and selected characteristics: United States, average

Immunizations Health care contacts in past 12 months

Has a regular Flu

source of Pneumonia (past 12 Emergency Home

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 

Population health care (ever) months) Dentist Doctor room care

Number in
 

thousands8 Percent9 (standard error)
 

............... 66,076 94.3 (0.15) 40.3 (0.35) 51.1 (0.36) 61.4 (0.37) 91.3 (0.20) 21.5 (0.27) 4.8 (0.14) 
 

............... 30,709 91.9 (0.26) 21.2 (0.41) 36.5 (0.50) 65.9 (0.51) 87.8 (0.32) 18.8 (0.38) 2.2 (0.13) 
 

............... 35,367 96.4 (0.16) 57.0 (0.45) 63.8 (0.43) 57.4 (0.48) 94.3 (0.20) 24.0 (0.37) 7.1 (0.22) 
 

............... 18,786 95.7 (0.23) 50.9 (0.61) 58.9 (0.57) 59.2 (0.61) 93.4 (0.29) 20.6 (0.47) 4.4 (0.23) 
 ............... 12,601 97.1 (0.22) 64.4 (0.67) 68.7 (0.62) 56.9 (0.73) 94.9 (0.31) 26.3 (0.61) 8.3 (0.38) 
 

............... 3,980 97.5 (0.35) 62.2 (1.23) 71.6 (1.13) 50.6 (1.22) 96.6 (0.46) 32.5 (1.16) 15.9 (0.90) 
 

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14,772 90.6 (0.41) 19.4 (0.56) 33.9 (0.67) 63.4 (0.72) 85.7 (0.51) 18.4 (0.52) 1.9 (0.18)

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15,937 93.2 (0.33) 22.9 (0.55) 38.8 (0.68) 68.2 (0.64) 89.8 (0.40) 19.1 (0.51) 2.6 (0.20)

............... 23,654 93.0 (0.28) 22.7 (0.49) 38.7 (0.59) 69.4 (0.57) 89.0 (0.36) 18.1 (0.44) 2.3 (0.16)

............... 2,964 91.2 (0.81) 19.7 (1.09) 29.0 (1.17) 50.7 (1.34) 88.9 (0.78) 27.0 (1.18) 3.1 (0.45)

............... 1,068 90.5 (1.43) 10.9 (1.68) 30.2 (2.54) 69.5 (2.57) 82.3 (2.04) 12.1 (1.63) *0.7 (0.31)

............... 2,449 82.6 (1.14) 13.1 (0.97) 26.5 (1.29) 50.2 (1.60) 77.4 (1.34) 17.1 (1.11) 1.5 (0.35)

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2,661 84.5 (1.03) 25.9 (1.36) 33.7 (1.63) 36.4 (1.57) 82.9 (1.24) 31.2 (1.36) 5.4 (0.66) 
 

............... 4,557 87.1 (0.83) 24.2 (1.15) 31.0 (1.17) 46.1 (1.28) 84.1 (1.05) 24.0 (1.09) 3.7 (0.53) 
 

............... 23,492 93.7 (0.27) 20.1 (0.46) 37.8 (0.59) 73.0 (0.53) 89.1 (0.37) 16.4 (0.41) 1.6 (0.13) 
 

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22,907 95.4 (0.24) 19.9 (0.47) 38.1 (0.59) 74.3 (0.53) 90.7 (0.33) 16.4 (0.42) 1.6 (0.14) 
 

............... 1,803 96.0 (0.72) 35.8 (1.73) 43.3 (1.74) 42.2 (1.76) 94.0 (0.94) 39.9 (1.71) 11.0 (1.17) 
 

............... 2,348 95.4 (0.77) 37.8 (1.73) 44.0 (1.81) 48.6 (1.72) 93.1 (0.83) 29.3 (1.55) 3.2 (0.52) 
 

............... 3,526 64.8 (1.27) 12.1 (0.88) 17.8 (1.03) 34.6 (1.34) 63.0 (1.32) 16.6 (1.02) 0.9 (0.25) 
 

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21,195 93.4 (0.29) 20.3 (0.51) 37.6 (0.64) 70.0 (0.63) 89.2 (0.39) 17.4 (0.46) 1.7 (0.15)

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6,773 88.9 (0.56) 24.1 (0.76) 33.9 (0.84) 56.0 (0.85) 85.5 (0.61) 23.4 (0.72) 3.4 (0.30)

............... 1,650 88.5 (1.13) 23.3 (1.58) 38.1 (1.74) 59.9 (1.83) 81.9 (1.50) 18.1 (1.30) 4.5 (0.83)

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15,088 95.7 (0.26) 54.3 (0.68) 63.6 (0.63) 56.3 (0.69) 93.0 (0.33) 23.0 (0.55) 5.7 (0.29)

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20,278 97.0 (0.18) 59.0 (0.56) 64.0 (0.54) 58.3 (0.58) 95.3 (0.24) 24.6 (0.47) 8.1 (0.30)

............... 28,696 96.8 (0.16) 61.4 (0.50) 66.8 (0.48) 60.5 (0.53) 94.7 (0.22) 23.7 (0.41) 6.8 (0.25)

............... 2,934 96.2 (0.46) 39.7 (1.14) 47.1 (1.20) 37.3 (1.21) 93.9 (0.54) 26.6 (1.05) 10.2 (0.74)

............... 989 95.2 (1.20) 34.6 (2.38) 62.5 (2.43) 60.0 (2.52) 91.7 (1.46) 21.4 (2.10) 3.0 (0.81)

............... 2,282 92.7 (1.01) 31.6 (1.34) 48.3 (1.44) 44.6 (1.49) 90.8 (0.97) 24.2 (1.26) 7.5 (0.74)

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3,699 94.2 (0.70) 45.7 (1.21) 55.6 (1.33) 33.8 (1.25) 92.3 (0.70) 30.2 (1.16) 12.0 (0.78)

............... 9,306 95.9 (0.35) 55.5 (0.89) 60.7 (0.86) 43.4 (0.91) 93.7 (0.42) 26.1 (0.79) 8.8 (0.47)

............... 22,362 97.0 (0.19) 59.4 (0.61) 66.5 (0.59) 67.1 (0.56) 94.9 (0.26) 22.0 (0.48) 5.5 (0.26)

National Health Statistics Reportsn Number 16n July 8, 2009 Page 21
5 and over according to selected measures of health care access and utilization, by age and selected characteristics: United States, average

Immunizations Health care contacts in past 12 months

Has a regular Flu

source of Pneumonia (past 12 Emergency Home

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 

Population health care (ever) months) Dentist Doctor room care

Number in
 

thousands8 Percent9 (standard error)
 

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20,866 97.6 (0.16) 61.8 (0.56) 67.7 (0.54) 64.7 (0.57) 95.8 (0.22) 23.1 (0.48) 6.3 (0.27) 
 

............... 2,208 95.6 (0.66) 44.9 (1.55) 55.8 (1.54) 31.5 (1.46) 95.0 (0.71) 35.6 (1.44) 18.1 (1.15) 
 

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9,604 95.0 (0.32) 48.7 (0.83) 56.7 (0.79) 48.1 (0.82) 91.4 (0.46) 23.4 (0.70) 6.3 (0.38) 
 

............... 2,340 97.7 (0.47) 64.5 (1.55) 70.1 (1.44) 57.8 (1.57) 95.4 (0.63) 24.1 (1.34) 7.2 (0.92) 
 

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19,759 96.9 (0.22) 57.7 (0.63) 66.5 (0.57) 63.1 (0.63) 94.8 (0.29) 21.9 (0.51) 4.8 (0.26)

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13,848 96.2 (0.22) 56.9 (0.58) 61.2 (0.60) 49.8 (0.63) 94.1 (0.27) 27.2 (0.52) 10.1 (0.39)

............... 1,223 92.6 (0.97) 51.1 (1.80) 52.6 (1.81) 54.8 (1.86) 90.1 (1.06) 21.7 (1.46) 9.2 (1.03)

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8,620 94.9 (0.38) 47.2 (0.89) 57.1 (0.86) 57.3 (0.89) 91.9 (0.48) 19.6 (0.70) 3.7 (0.30)

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10,166 96.4 (0.27) 54.1 (0.81) 60.4 (0.75) 60.9 (0.78) 94.8 (0.33) 21.4 (0.62) 4.9 (0.34)

............... 14,706 96.2 (0.25) 55.4 (0.69) 62.1 (0.66) 62.3 (0.70) 93.9 (0.32) 19.8 (0.54) 4.1 (0.26)

............... 1,791 95.5 (0.66) 36.7 (1.40) 44.2 (1.55) 41.8 (1.55) 93.3 (0.71) 25.1 (1.32) 7.8 (0.81)

............... 606 93.1 (1.71) 30.1 (3.05) 57.4 (3.22) 62.6 (3.20) 88.7 (2.19) 19.2 (2.62) *1.3 (0.58)

............... 1,397 92.1 (1.07) 29.5 (1.68) 44.8 (1.90) 49.8 (1.89) 90.5 (1.12) 22.2 (1.54) 4.0 (0.71)

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,791 92.6 (1.06) 41.0 (1.82) 49.3 (1.91) 35.4 (1.64) 91.2 (1.11) 30.4 (1.66) 9.5 (1.07) 
 

............... 4,216 94.7 (0.59) 48.3 (1.39) 53.5 (1.31) 41.8 (1.34) 92.1 (0.67) 22.1 (1.04) 5.7 (0.55) 
 

............... 12,780 96.5 (0.26) 53.2 (0.79) 62.0 (0.75) 68.2 (0.69) 94.2 (0.35) 18.7 (0.60) 3.2 (0.26) 
 

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11,008 97.3 (0.25) 55.0 (0.78) 62.6 (0.74) 66.8 (0.74) 95.3 (0.34) 19.7 (0.62) 3.6 (0.30) 
 

............... 1,170 94.7 (1.01) 42.2 (2.17) 53.8 (2.16) 33.7 (1.99) 95.1 (0.80) 33.1 (1.91) 13.0 (1.30) 
 

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5,067 93.7 (0.48) 43.6 (1.10) 51.3 (1.08) 49.8 (1.08) 89.9 (0.66) 19.7 (0.89) 3.7 (0.42) 
 

............... 1,304 97.9 (0.55) 58.8 (2.20) 66.8 (1.98) 58.7 (2.07) 95.1 (0.82) 20.5 (1.60) 5.8 (0.99) 
 

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12,273 96.4 (0.30) 51.9 (0.79) 61.5 (0.73) 63.7 (0.76) 94.0 (0.37) 19.8 (0.63) 3.5 (0.27)

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5,453 94.9 (0.38) 50.3 (0.89) 54.8 (0.91) 50.2 (0.90) 92.6 (0.43) 22.9 (0.74) 6.1 (0.47)

............... 699 91.7 (1.39) 45.9 (2.45) 47.2 (2.44) 54.3 (2.45) 89.7 (1.43) 18.2 (1.72) 6.4 (1.16)

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5,108 96.8 (0.36) 63.8 (1.07) 71.1 (0.95) 56.1 (1.11) 93.9 (0.53) 26.0 (0.96) 6.5 (0.53)

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7,493 97.4 (0.26) 64.8 (0.82) 67.1 (0.78) 57.4 (0.89) 95.5 (0.37) 26.5 (0.77) 9.5 (0.51)

............... 10,527 97.3 (0.23) 68.5 (0.73) 71.0 (0.69) 60.4 (0.79) 95.1 (0.35) 26.1 (0.68) 7.7 (0.43)

............... 900 97.0 (0.71) 45.6 (2.09) 51.1 (2.15) 31.7 (1.91) 94.4 (0.96) 28.2 (1.87) 12.1 (1.33)

............... 290 98.9 (0.78) 42.2 (3.97) 72.8 (3.67) 58.1 (4.51) 96.9 (1.25) 23.0 (3.70) *4.2 (1.71)

............... 729 93.4 (1.34) 35.5 (2.44) 55.2 (2.50) 37.7 (2.37) 91.3 (1.23) 26.7 (2.23) 11.2 (1.39)

Page 22 National Health Statistics Reportsn Number 16n July 8, 2009
5 and over according to selected measures of health care access and utilization, by age and selected characteristics: United States, average

Immunizations Health care contacts in past 12 months

Has a regular Flu

source of Pneumonia (past 12 Emergency Home

Population health care1 (ever)2 months)3 Dentist4 Doctor5 room6 care7

Number in
 

thousands8 Percent9 (standard error)
 

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,389 95.8 (0.73) 50.1 (1.92) 60.7 (1.77) 33.0 (2.04) 93.2 (0.96) 29.1 (1.91) 12.4 (1.44) 
 

............... 3,833 96.7 (0.42) 62.0 (1.34) 65.1 (1.12) 46.1 (1.24) 94.7 (0.57) 27.9 (1.17) 10.4 (0.81) 
 

............... 7,378 97.6 (0.27) 68.3 (0.97) 72.1 (0.84) 66.9 (0.93) 95.3 (0.42) 24.9 (0.90) 6.4 (0.46) 
 

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7,522 97.9 (0.25) 69.9 (0.84) 73.2 (0.78) 64.2 (0.88) 96.0 (0.35) 25.3 (0.78) 7.5 (0.48) 
 

............... 793 96.7 (0.95) 47.8 (2.47) 57.5 (2.42) 28.4 (2.36) 95.3 (1.27) 37.6 (2.42) 20.6 (1.96) 
 

............... 3,350 96.2 (0.46) 54.4 (1.34) 60.6 (1.27) 47.6 (1.37) 92.5 (0.72) 26.1 (1.22) 6.9 (0.62) 
 

............... 862 97.6 (0.87) 72.6 (2.40) 74.0 (2.32) 56.1 (2.72) 95.5 (1.17) 26.3 (2.39) 9.0 (1.84) 
 

............... 6,327 97.7 (0.30) 67.1 (1.01) 73.7 (0.92) 63.0 (1.06) 95.7 (0.47) 24.0 (0.92) 6.3 (0.52)

............... 5,737 96.9 (0.30) 61.8 (0.87) 63.9 (0.84) 50.1 (0.95) 94.3 (0.42) 28.6 (0.84) 10.4 (0.58)

............... 398 94.0 (1.45) 58.7 (2.98) 59.2 (3.06) 55.9 (3.04) 90.7 (1.74) 26.3 (2.83) 10.3 (1.69)

............... 1,361 96.6 (0.77) 63.7 (2.13) 77.3 (1.78) 51.3 (2.23) 96.3 (0.62) 33.6 (2.13) 15.3 (1.53)

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2,619 97.9 (0.38) 61.4 (1.50) 68.6 (1.42) 50.2 (1.53) 96.8 (0.62) 31.9 (1.34) 16.3 (1.08)

............... 3,463 97.5 (0.37) 65.6 (1.30) 74.0 (1.18) 53.3 (1.32) 97.0 (0.43) 32.6 (1.25) 15.4 (0.96)

............... 243 97.7 (1.13) 40.3 (4.26) 53.9 (3.90) 24.8 (3.43) 96.4 (1.20) 31.5 (3.65) 20.2 (3.51)

............... 92 97.6 (2.36) 41.2 (7.48) 63.1 (7.79) 48.9 (7.39) 94.4 (2.89) 31.6 (8.21) †

............... 156 95.0 (3.21) 32.5 (5.55) 48.4 (6.01) 28.9 (4.96) 90.8 (6.19) 30.0 (5.33) 21.7 (4.75)

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 519 95.6 (1.67) 50.6 (3.23) 63.8 (3.48) 30.1 (3.25) 93.9 (1.50) 32.5 (3.40) 19.7 (2.69) 
 

............... 1,257 97.4 (0.80) 59.8 (2.18) 71.6 (2.30) 40.4 (2.05) 96.3 (0.80) 34.1 (2.18) 14.0 (1.62) 
 

............... 2,204 97.9 (0.43) 66.2 (1.79) 73.3 (1.63) 61.1 (1.76) 97.5 (0.57) 31.6 (1.71) 16.2 (1.37) 
 

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2,335 98.6 (0.28) 67.5 (1.58) 74.3 (1.41) 56.3 (1.57) 97.9 (0.39) 32.1 (1.50) 14.7 (1.10) 
 

............... 245 96.2 (1.75) 49.2 (4.49) 60.1 (4.31) 30.5 (4.16) 93.9 (2.47) 40.8 (4.24) 35.4 (4.10) 
 

............... 1,188 96.7 (0.72) 54.4 (2.14) 68.1 (2.06) 42.2 (2.28) 94.8 (1.06) 31.1 (2.01) 15.5 (1.64) 
 

............... 174 96.8 (1.79) 67.3 (5.40) 75.4 (4.47) 59.1 (5.65) 96.8 (1.53) 40.9 (5.83) *9.3 (3.40) 
 

............... 1,159 98.0 (0.79) 68.7 (2.36) 80.1 (1.94) 56.4 (2.40) 97.9 (0.68) 32.8 (2.34) 11.3 (1.46)

............... 2,658 97.4 (0.39) 60.0 (1.40) 68.7 (1.33) 48.1 (1.41) 96.5 (0.53) 32.8 (1.33) 17.5 (1.10)

............... 127 93.4 (2.51) 55.9 (5.56) 61.3 (5.12) 54.2 (5.68) 90.8 (3.22) 26.1 (4.77) 21.6 (4.56)

30% and less than or equal to 50% and should be used with caution, as they do not meet standards of reliability or precision.
 

an 50% and is not shown.
 

y go when you are sick or need advice about your health?’’ Includes responses of ‘‘yes’’ and ‘‘more than one place.’’
 

monia shot?’’
 

have you had a flu shot?’’ A question about nasal spray flu vaccination (FluMist®) asked in NHIS is not asked of persons aged 50 and over because this form of vaccine is not recommended for this age
 

you last saw or talked to a dentist? Include all types of dentists including orthodontists, oral surgeons, and other dental specialists, as well as dental hygienists.’’
 

since you last saw or talked to a doctor or other health care professional about your own health? Include doctors seen while a patient in a hospital.’’
 

National Health Statistics Reportsn Number 16n July 8, 2009 Page 23
how many times have you gone to a hospital emergency room about your own health? (This includes emergency room visits that resulted in a hospital admission.)’’

did you receive care at home from a health care professional?’’

cs.

denominators when calculating percentages (see ‘‘Technical Notes’’ section).

anic origin may be of any race. Other race categories are not shown separately due to small sample sizes.

U.S. Census Bureau’s poverty thresholds for the previous calendar year. Poor persons are those with family incomes below the poverty threshold. Near poor persons had incomes of 100% to less than

incomes that were 200% of the poverty threshold or greater.

usive categories. Persons with more than one type of health insurance were assigned to the first appropriate category in the hierarchy. Persons under age 65 and those aged 65 and over were classified

age in the older population. The category ‘‘private’’ includes persons who had any type of private coverage either alone or in combination with other coverage. For example, for persons aged 65 and over,

in combination with Medicare. The category ‘‘uninsured’’ includes persons who had no coverage as well as those who had only Indian Health Service coverage or had only a private plan that paid for

(see ‘‘Technical Notes’’ section). The category ‘‘uninsured’’ is not shown separately for adults aged 65 and over because only about 1% of this age group lacks coverage.

ouse); ‘‘formerly married’’ (widowed, divorced, separated); and ‘‘never married.’’ Adults living with a partner are not shown separately due to small sample size.

sample of the civilian noninstitutionalized population.

Page 24 National Health Statistics Reportsn Number 16n July 8, 2009
5 and over with selected health behaviors, by age and selected characteristics: United States, average annual, 2004–2007

Health behavior

Any leisure- Regular leisuretime physical time physical Strengthening Healthy Never Current Sleep 7 to

1 2 3 4 5 6 

Population activity activity activity weight smoked nonsmoker 8 hours7

Number in
 

thousands8 Percent9 (standard error)
 

.......... 66,076 51.9 (0.44) 24.0 (0.32) 15.8 (0.27) 33.6 (0.31) 50.4 (0.35) 86.5 (0.22) 62.3 (0.31) 
 

.......... 30,709 58.1 (0.57) 27.4 (0.48) 18.9 (0.41) 29.5 (0.46) 48.4 (0.51) 81.3 (0.37) 64.1 (0.49) 
 

.......... 35,367 46.5 (0.53) 21.0 (0.39) 13.0 (0.31) 37.2 (0.40) 52.0 (0.44) 91.0 (0.24) 60.8 (0.40) 
 

.......... 18,786 52.9 (0.68) 24.9 (0.55) 15.0 (0.45) 31.6 (0.54) 48.4 (0.58) 87.7 (0.37) 63.5 (0.53) 
 .......... 12,601 42.3 (0.74) 18.7 (0.58) 11.6 (0.46) 40.5 (0.68) 53.2 (0.70) 93.9 (0.32) 59.4 (0.65) 
 

.......... 3,980 29.2 (1.17) 9.8 (0.71) 8.6 (0.67) 53.1 (1.24) 65.5 (1.20) 97.8 (0.34) 52.5 (1.22) 
 

.......... 14,772 58.6 (0.77) 28.8 (0.68) 19.4 (0.57) 23.7 (0.62) 38.4 (0.71) 78.8 (0.55) 64.9 (0.70)

.......... 15,937 57.6 (0.74) 26.1 (0.63) 18.5 (0.54) 35.2 (0.67) 57.6 (0.69) 83.6 (0.49) 63.4 (0.65)

.......... 23,654 61.6 (0.65) 29.8 (0.57) 20.6 (0.49) 29.7 (0.53) 45.6 (0.60) 81.2 (0.44) 65.5 (0.57)

.......... 2,964 43.7 (1.37) 16.6 (1.00) 13.8 (0.94) 23.4 (1.14) 53.3 (1.33) 76.5 (1.11) 54.2 (1.31)

.......... 1,068 54.5 (2.77) 27.4 (2.33) 13.2 (1.65) 61.6 (2.76) 73.6 (2.23) 90.2 (1.46) 62.1 (2.77)

.......... 2,449 43.6 (1.61) 18.8 (1.18) 10.9 (0.91) 23.2 (1.46) 61.3 (1.54) 85.6 (1.03) 64.4 (1.51)

. . . . . . . . . . 2,661 34.5 (1.56) 14.6 (1.06) 8.9 (0.88) 28.0 (1.48) 42.6 (1.54) 69.1 (1.45) 53.1 (1.81) 
 

.......... 4,557 41.2 (1.44) 17.0 (1.11) 10.0 (0.80) 28.0 (1.13) 45.1 (1.35) 74.9 (1.13) 57.4 (1.56) 
 

.......... 23,492 64.0 (0.61) 30.9 (0.57) 21.8 (0.49) 30.0 (0.54) 49.7 (0.60) 83.9 (0.41) 66.6 (0.57) 
 

. . . . . . . . . . 22,907 64.0 (0.61) 30.8 (0.57) 21.4 (0.49) 30.3 (0.55) 50.6 (0.60) 84.6 (0.40) 66.9 (0.57) 
 

.......... 1,803 32.7 (1.70) 11.8 (1.11) 8.3 (0.94) 24.2 (1.47) 43.9 (1.75) 70.5 (1.60) 49.6 (1.80) 
 

. . . . . . . . . . 2,348 43.3 (1.91) 20.6 (1.42) 14.6 (1.28) 24.0 (1.52) 34.5 (1.62) 72.9 (1.46) 51.8 (1.74) 
 

.......... 3,526 43.3 (1.47) 18.5 (1.05) 11.3 (0.84) 31.0 (1.38) 45.3 (1.39) 71.2 (1.24) 61.0 (1.42) 
 

. . . . . . . . . . 21,195 60.0 (0.67) 28.9 (0.61) 19.5 (0.51) 29.1 (0.57) 50.1 (0.65) 84.6 (0.44) 66.3 (0.60)

.......... 6,773 53.3 (0.88) 23.6 (0.71) 17.3 (0.64) 30.8 (0.78) 43.4 (0.85) 72.6 (0.74) 58.0 (0.84)

.......... 1,650 54.1 (1.85) 24.0 (1.43) 17.6 (1.37) 30.8 (1.68) 55.2 (1.78) 82.2 (1.39) 63.4 (1.83)

.......... 15,088 51.4 (0.75) 24.9 (0.61) 14.7 (0.47) 32.3 (0.58) 36.3 (0.66) 89.8 (0.39) 62.4 (0.62)

.......... 20,278 42.9 (0.62) 18.1 (0.45) 11.8 (0.38) 41.0 (0.53) 63.7 (0.54) 91.9 (0.29) 59.6 (0.53)

.......... 28,696 48.4 (0.60) 21.8 (0.44) 13.9 (0.36) 38.0 (0.45) 49.7 (0.49) 91.0 (0.27) 62.0 (0.44)

.......... 2,934 33.7 (1.25) 13.8 (0.87) 8.6 (0.71) 26.6 (1.00) 57.3 (1.20) 89.1 (0.73) 53.7 (1.21)

.......... 989 52.8 (2.52) 30.3 (2.26) 12.2 (1.63) 63.0 (2.39) 76.0 (2.08) 96.5 (0.91) 57.7 (2.37)

.......... 2,282 34.6 (1.41) 17.1 (1.18) 8.0 (0.80) 30.1 (1.29) 66.3 (1.43) 93.4 (0.71) 58.3 (1.38)

. . . . . . . . . . 3,699 27.8 (1.15) 11.1 (0.78) 5.7 (0.58) 36.6 (1.20) 58.6 (1.27) 88.0 (0.89) 52.6 (1.20)

.......... 9,306 37.9 (0.85) 14.8 (0.59) 8.1 (0.44) 36.3 (0.82) 54.3 (0.80) 90.7 (0.53) 56.8 (0.79)

.......... 22,362 53.1 (0.64) 25.2 (0.50) 16.3 (0.43) 37.6 (0.55) 50.0 (0.57) 91.7 (0.31) 63.8 (0.53)

National Health Statistics Reportsn Number 16n July 8, 2009 Page 25
5 and over with selected health behaviors, by age and selected characteristics: United States, average annual, 2004–2007—Con.

Health behavior

Any leisure- Regular leisuretime physical time physical Strengthening Healthy Never Current Sleep 7 to

1 2 3 4 5 6 

Population activity activity activity weight smoked nonsmoker 8 hours7

Number in
 

thousands8 Percent9 (standard error)
 

. . . . . . . . . . 20,866 52.0 (0.62) 23.4 (0.48) 14.9 (0.41) 37.4 (0.54) 51.1 (0.56) 91.9 (0.30) 62.5 (0.52) 
 

.......... 2,208 27.2 (1.36) 11.4 (0.94) 5.0 (0.63) 34.4 (1.37) 58.1 (1.54) 87.7 (0.92) 46.9 (1.49) 
 

.......... 9,604 39.4 (0.98) 17.9 (0.71) 10.8 (0.56) 37.9 (0.77) 54.6 (0.81) 90.4 (0.45) 60.9 (0.77) 
 

. . . . . . . . . . 2,340 46.7 (1.70) 22.7 (1.40) 14.3 (1.19) 34.7 (1.59) 41.7 (1.58) 88.9 (1.02) 58.4 (1.55) 
 

. . . . . . . . . . 19,759 51.6 (0.72) 24.4 (0.55) 14.6 (0.46) 35.0 (0.59) 49.4 (0.62) 92.1 (0.32) 63.2 (0.55)

.......... 13,848 39.7 (0.64) 16.1 (0.44) 10.9 (0.36) 40.3 (0.54) 55.5 (0.60) 89.7 (0.34) 57.2 (0.58)

.......... 1,223 43.8 (1.82) 21.4 (1.45) 12.0 (1.17) 39.3 (1.75) 60.8 (1.77) 89.8 (1.13) 59.6 (1.78)

.......... 8,620 55.4 (0.95) 27.5 (0.81) 15.3 (0.62) 26.7 (0.74) 35.9 (0.81) 86.5 (0.58) 64.5 (0.78)

.......... 10,166 50.8 (0.83) 22.7 (0.68) 14.7 (0.61) 36.0 (0.80) 59.0 (0.77) 88.7 (0.48) 62.6 (0.74)

.......... 14,706 55.6 (0.78) 26.2 (0.63) 16.0 (0.53) 31.9 (0.62) 45.2 (0.66) 87.2 (0.43) 65.2 (0.61)

.......... 1,791 40.5 (1.62) 16.8 (1.19) 10.3 (0.98) 22.8 (1.23) 54.9 (1.55) 86.4 (1.04) 54.9 (1.51)

.......... 606 55.2 (3.15) 31.9 (2.87) 13.4 (2.18) 61.5 (3.17) 75.0 (2.74) 96.7 (1.22) 58.9 (3.09)

.......... 1,397 39.3 (1.80) 19.6 (1.61) 9.1 (1.07) 26.3 (1.57) 63.7 (1.81) 92.1 (0.95) 60.6 (1.75)

. . . . . . . . . . 1,791 31.6 (1.55) 12.5 (1.08) 5.7 (0.77) 30.6 (1.79) 52.2 (1.72) 82.6 (1.48) 53.0 (1.60) 
 

.......... 4,216 43.0 (1.35) 17.4 (0.94) 8.5 (0.66) 29.1 (1.24) 49.9 (1.19) 86.0 (0.95) 58.4 (1.21) 
 

.......... 12,780 59.2 (0.82) 29.1 (0.70) 18.4 (0.59) 32.6 (0.71) 47.4 (0.72) 89.0 (0.46) 66.6 (0.68) 
 

. . . . . . . . . . 11,008 59.5 (0.81) 28.0 (0.70) 17.3 (0.62) 31.2 (0.72) 47.8 (0.77) 89.0 (0.46) 65.4 (0.71) 
 

.......... 1,170 29.6 (1.81) 11.5 (1.28) 4.7 (0.75) 29.6 (1.87) 49.9 (2.05) 80.9 (1.50) 46.7 (2.02) 
 

.......... 5,067 44.7 (1.29) 21.4 (1.07) 12.1 (0.75) 33.2 (1.03) 50.9 (1.09) 86.8 (0.73) 63.8 (1.03) 
 

. . . . . . . . . . 1,304 53.0 (2.23) 26.3 (2.00) 17.1 (1.65) 29.9 (2.02) 39.6 (1.94) 86.7 (1.38) 60.2 (1.99) 
 

. . . . . . . . . . 12,273 55.9 (0.87) 26.9 (0.70) 15.7 (0.59) 31.0 (0.72) 48.5 (0.77) 89.9 (0.46) 65.2 (0.70)

.......... 5,453 47.0 (0.92) 20.2 (0.72) 13.5 (0.61) 32.6 (0.83) 47.6 (0.92) 83.2 (0.65) 59.9 (0.84)

.......... 699 50.1 (2.40) 26.1 (2.04) 13.7 (1.63) 33.4 (2.22) 55.4 (2.44) 85.1 (1.78) 59.3 (2.34)

.......... 5,108 48.7 (1.15) 23.5 (0.95) 14.2 (0.79) 36.9 (1.07) 34.9 (1.11) 93.4 (0.55) 61.1 (1.05)

.......... 7,493 38.0 (0.88) 15.4 (0.66) 9.8 (0.51) 43.0 (0.84) 65.6 (0.85) 94.2 (0.39) 58.1 (0.84)

.......... 10,527 44.3 (0.82) 19.5 (0.65) 12.5 (0.53) 41.2 (0.76) 51.2 (0.79) 94.0 (0.35) 60.4 (0.73)

.......... 900 25.0 (1.86) 10.0 (1.34) 5.8 (0.98) 29.8 (1.78) 57.4 (1.98) 91.8 (1.06) 52.1 (2.15)

.......... 290 52.2 (4.58) 30.6 (4.20) 10.0 (2.44) 67.5 (3.95) 77.0 (3.29) 95.0 (1.77) 54.6 (4.37)

.......... 729 29.1 (2.28) 14.0 (1.71) 6.3 (1.27) 34.3 (2.36) 69.1 (2.18) 95.0 (1.17) 57.8 (2.57)

Page 26 National Health Statistics Reportsn Number 16n July 8, 2009
5 and over with selected health behaviors, by age and selected characteristics: United States, average annual, 2004–2007—Con.

Health behavior

Any leisure- Regular leisuretime physical time physical Strengthening Healthy Never Current Sleep 7 to

Population activity1 activity2 activity3 weight4 smoked5 nonsmoker6 8 hours7

Number in
 

thousands8 Percent9 (standard error)
 

.......... 1,389 26.4 (1.79) 11.0 (1.37) 5.7 (1.11) 38.6 (1.92) 61.4 (2.04) 91.6 (1.11) 53.8 (2.18) 
 

.......... 3,833 36.6 (1.28) 14.4 (0.83) 8.7 (0.66) 38.9 (1.41) 55.2 (1.22) 93.4 (0.63) 56.6 (1.26) 
 

.......... 7,378 48.3 (1.04) 22.4 (0.81) 14.2 (0.66) 41.7 (0.98) 50.6 (0.97) 94.5 (0.44) 61.8 (0.89) 
 

. . . . . . . . . . 7,522 46.9 (0.91) 20.7 (0.74) 13.4 (0.60) 41.3 (0.89) 52.0 (0.91) 94.5 (0.40) 60.3 (0.86) 
 

.......... 793 26.9 (2.21) 11.5 (1.48) 4.8 (0.95) 37.6 (2.38) 65.8 (2.37) 94.7 (0.93) 48.9 (2.57) 
 

.......... 3,350 36.6 (1.41) 16.0 (1.02) 10.0 (0.87) 39.6 (1.31) 55.5 (1.33) 93.0 (0.65) 60.2 (1.25) 
 

. . . . . . . . . . 862 40.4 (2.79) 18.6 (2.09) 9.3 (1.45) 38.3 (2.68) 41.4 (2.76) 90.9 (1.60) 57.5 (2.72) 
 

.......... 6,327 46.5 (1.14) 21.8 (0.92) 13.3 (0.73) 40.3 (1.07) 50.2 (1.06) 95.3 (0.46) 61.1 (1.01)

.......... 5,737 38.3 (0.91) 15.6 (0.66) 9.9 (0.52) 40.5 (0.86) 56.3 (0.92) 92.2 (0.48) 57.0 (0.90)

.......... 398 36.7 (3.07) 16.7 (2.24) 9.4 (1.72) 44.6 (3.16) 64.9 (2.89) 95.2 (1.28) 63.0 (3.05)

.......... 1,361 35.8 (2.11) 13.4 (1.51) 12.4 (1.37) 51.1 (2.13) 44.4 (2.13) 97.9 (0.54) 53.9 (2.16)

.......... 2,619 25.7 (1.30) 7.9 (0.74) 6.6 (0.69) 54.2 (1.48) 76.5 (1.26) 97.8 (0.42) 51.7 (1.47)

.......... 3,463 30.4 (1.27) 9.9 (0.77) 8.7 (0.73) 54.0 (1.35) 64.2 (1.31) 97.8 (0.37) 53.0 (1.30)

.......... 243 17.3 (3.00) *5.2 (2.26) *6.6 (2.04) 42.9 (3.95) 74.1 (3.75) 98.3 (0.74) 50.1 (4.30)

.......... 92 39.2 (7.23) 18.6 (5.41) *11.2 (5.48) 58.6 (7.36) 79.5 (6.56) 100.0 (0.00) 59.9 (9.06)

.......... 156 17.7 (4.07) *9.9 (3.22) *5.5 (2.30) 46.3 (5.06) 76.7 (4.70) 97.8 (1.65) 39.2 (4.90)

.......... 519 18.3 (2.43) 6.4 (1.69) 5.7 (1.39) 52.3 (3.30) 73.4 (2.85) 96.9 (0.98) 47.6 (3.16) 
 

.......... 1,257 25.0 (1.99) 7.0 (1.01) 5.1 (0.92) 52.3 (2.20) 66.8 (2.16) 98.0 (0.55) 52.2 (2.23) 
 

.......... 2,204 34.1 (1.75) 12.2 (1.12) 11.3 (1.06) 53.7 (1.74) 63.0 (1.77) 98.0 (0.46) 53.7 (1.80) 
 

. . . . . . . . . . 2,335 32.8 (1.54) 10.2 (1.00) 8.6 (0.86) 53.6 (1.57) 64.1 (1.56) 97.8 (0.41) 55.4 (1.58) 
 

.......... 245 16.7 (3.53) 10.2 (2.78) *7.3 (2.53) 48.7 (4.72) 72.8 (3.72) 97.3 (1.29) 40.6 (4.42) 
 

.......... 1,188 25.1 (2.09) 8.3 (1.17) 7.7 (1.13) 53.5 (2.37) 67.7 (2.16) 98.1 (0.55) 50.3 (2.25) 
 

. . . . . . . . . . 174 30.2 (4.72) 15.3 (3.63) 18.8 (4.56) 53.3 (5.63) 59.5 (5.37) 96.5 (2.79) 49.1 (5.77) 
 

.......... 1,159 33.8 (2.45) 12.4 (1.71) 10.8 (1.55) 47.2 (2.54) 54.5 (2.54) 98.1 (0.68) 53.4 (2.52)

.......... 2,658 27.4 (1.33) 8.8 (0.75) 7.5 (0.68) 55.7 (1.42) 69.7 (1.30) 97.7 (0.40) 52.0 (1.40)

.......... 127 32.4 (5.02) *10.0 (3.11) *11.2 (3.62) 54.2 (5.30) 77.1 (4.22) 98.4 (1.16) 49.7 (5.77)

30% and less than or equal to 50% and should be used with caution, as they do not meet standards of reliability or precision.
 

either vigorous or moderate physical activities, regardless of frequency or duration. It is based on the same four questions as regular activity.
 

e physical activities at least three times a week for at least 20 minutes each time or moderate activities five times a week for at least 30 minutes each time. Based on four questions about frequency and
 

ysical activities.
 

es designed to strengthen muscles that are done during one’s leisure time. These may overlap with moderate and vigorous activities.
 

8.5 and less than 25, based on self-reported height and weight (see ‘‘Technical Notes’’ section).
 

ettes in their entire lifetimes.
 

eir lifetime (never smoked) or had smoked 100 cigarettes but were not smoking as of the date of the interview (former smokers).
 

urs of sleep do you get in a 24-hour period?’’
 

National Health Statistics Reportsn Number 16n July 8, 2009 Page 27
denominators when calculating percentages (see ‘‘Technical Notes’’ section).
 

anic origin may be of any race. Other race categories are not shown separately due to small sample sizes.
 

U.S. Census Bureau’s poverty thresholds for the previous calendar year. Poor persons are those with family incomes below the poverty threshold. Near poor persons had incomes of 100% to less than
 

incomes that were 200% of the poverty threshold or greater.
 

usive categories. Persons with more than one type of health insurance were assigned to the first appropriate category in the hierarchy. Persons under age 65 and those aged 65 and over were classified
 

age in the older population. The category ‘‘private’’ includes persons who had any type of private coverage either alone or in combination with other coverage. For example, for persons aged 65 and over,
 

in combination with Medicare. The category ‘‘uninsured’’ includes persons who had no coverage as well as those who had only Indian Health Service coverage or had only a private plan that paid for
 

(see ‘‘Technical Notes’’ section). The category ‘‘uninsured’’ is not shown separately for adults aged 65 and over because only about 1% of this age group lacks coverage.
 

ouse); ‘‘formerly married’’ (widowed, divorced, separated); and ‘‘never married.’’ Adults living with a partner are not shown separately due to small sample size.
 

sample of the civilian noninstitutionalized population.
 

Page 28 National Health Statistics Reportsn Number 16n July 8, 2009
National Health Statistics Reports n Number 16 n July 8, 2009	 Page 29

Table I. Completed interviews and response rates by year: National Health Interview Technical Notes Survey, 2004–2007

Sample design

NHIS is a cross-sectional household

interview survey of the U.S. civilian

noninstitutionalized population. Data are

collected continuously throughout the

year in all 50 states and the District of

Columbia. NHIS uses a multi-stage,

clustered sample design that allows

production of national estimates for a

variety of health indicators. Information

on basic health topics is collected for all

household members, by proxy from one

family member if necessary. Additional

information is collected from one

randomly sampled adult and about one

randomly sampled child in each family.

Self-response is required for the sample

adult questionnaire except in the rare

cases of sample adults who are

physically or mentally incapable of

responding for themselves. Interviews

are conducted in the home using a

computer-assisted personal interview

(CAPI) questionnaire with telephone

follow-up permitted if necessary.

Response rates

From 2004 through 2007, NHIS

interviews were completed for 133,558

families and 110,422 sample adults

living in households across the United

States. The household response rate for

these four years combined was 86.9%.

The final response rate for the sample

adult component was 70.0%. NHIS

interviews were completed for 110,422

sample adults aged 18 and over, of

whom 36,984 were aged 55 and over.

Response rates for single years are

shown in Table I. Procedures used in

calculating response rates for combined

data years are described in detail in

Appendix I of the NHIS Survey

Description Documents for 2004–2007

(28–31).

Item nonresponse

Item nonresponse for each of the

sociodemographic indicators was less

than 1.0%, with the exception of

detailed income (21.7%). Due to the

large item nonresponse for detailed

income, a set of imputed income files

Interviews and rates 2004 2005 2006 2007

Completed interviews

Household ........................ 36,579 38,509 29,204 29,266

Family/person. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37,466 39,284 29,868 29,915

Sample adult ....................... 31,326 31,428 24,275 23,393

Response rates

Household......................... 86.9% 86.5% 87.3% 87.1%

Family1........................... 99.6% 99.5% 99.6% 99.4%

Sample adult2 ...................... 83.8% 80.1% 81.4% 78.3%

1

Response rate conditional on completion of the previous stage of the interview (i.e., the household component). For final
 

(unconditional) response rates, see Survey Description Document for the relevant year.
 2

Response rate conditional on completion of the previous stage of the interview (i.e., the family component). For final
 

(unconditional) response rates, see Survey Description Document for the relevant year.
 

NOTE: Data are based on household interviews of a sample of the civilian noninstitutionalized population.
 

using multiple imputation has been

created for every data year since 1997.

Estimates by poverty status shown in

this report were based on the 2004–2007

NHIS imputed income files. Information

about these files and the multiple

imputation procedures are available on

the NHIS website in the ‘‘Data Release’’

section for each survey year (43).

Estimates for persons with unknown

sociodemographic characteristics are not

shown separately in the tables, but are

included in the totals and in all other

variables for which data were reported.

Item nonresponse for the health-related

variables was less than 2.0%, with the

exception of BMI (4.9%). The

denominators for percents shown in

Tables 1–4 exclude persons for whom

the relevant information was not

reported.

Tests of significance

Statistical tests performed to assess

the significance of differences between

percentages were two-tailed with no

adjustments for multiple comparisons.

The test statistic used was

|Xa–Xb|

Z = , 2

√Sa

2 + Sb

where Xa and Xb are the two

percentages being compared, and Sa and

Sb are the standard errors of the

percentages. The critical value used for

two-sided tests at the 0.05 level of

significance was 1.96.

Relative standard error

The relative standard error RSE(x)

of an estimate x is obtained by dividing

the standard error SE(x) of the estimate

by the estimate itself. This quantity is

expressed as a percentage:

In Tables 1–4, estimates having an

RSE of greater than 30% and less than

or equal to 50% are indicated with an

asterisk, are considered statistically

unreliable, and should be interpreted

with extreme caution. Estimates having

an RSE of greater than 50%, if any, are

indicated with a dagger and are not

shown.

Definition of terms

Demographic terms

Age—The age recorded for each

person is the age at the last birthday.

Age is recorded in single years and

grouped in the tables shown in this

report.

Health insurance coverage—

Classification of health insurance

coverage differs for adults over and

under age 65. Categories are based on a

hierarchy and are mutually exclusive.

+	 For adults aged 55–64, health

insurance categories are: (1) private;

(2) Medicaid—which includes

Medicaid or any other public

coverage; (3) other coverage, which
Page 30 National Health Statistics Reports n Number 16 n July 8, 2009

includes any military plan or any

other government plan; and (4)

uninsured, which includes adults not

previously classified. The

‘‘uninsured’’ category includes

persons who have only Indian Health

Service or plans that pay for only one

type of service such as accidents or

dental care.

+ For adults aged 65 and over, the

health insurance categories are: (1)

private coverage, which includes

adults with or without Medicare; (2)

Medicaid and Medicare; (3) Medicare

only; and (4) other coverage, which

includes military coverage (with or

without Medicare), Medicaid only,

and other government programs not

previously classified.

Marital status categories shown are:

(1) currently married, which can include

legal marriage or common law marriage

with spouses living together or apart; (2)

formerly married, which includes

divorced, separated, or widowed adults;

and (3) never married.

Poverty status is based on family

income and family size using the U.S.

Census Bureau’s poverty thresholds.

Poor persons had family incomes below

the poverty threshold. Near poor persons

had family incomes of 100% to less

than 200% of the poverty threshold. Not

poor persons had incomes that were

200% of the poverty threshold or

greater.

Race and Hispanic origin are

combined into a single measure in this

report. Anyone with any Hispanic or

Latino origin (including persons of

Mexican, Puerto Rican, Cuban, Central

and South American, or Spanish origins)

was classified as Hispanic. The race

categories were limited to the three

largest single race groups due to issues

of statistical reliability with the smaller

groups. Data for single race persons

other than non-Hispanic black, nonHispanic white, and non-Hispanic Asian,

and for multiple race persons, although

not shown separately, are included in the

analysis for all other variables.

Health terms

Fair or poor health status is based

on the question, ‘‘Would you say

(your/name’s) health in general is

excellent, very good, good, fair, or

poor?’’ The last two categories are

combined for this report. This question

is part of the basic family core

questionnaire, and thus responses may

have been reported by a family

respondent (proxy) if the sample adult

was not present for the initial family

interview.

Hearing impairment—Adults were

asked to describe their hearing without

use of a hearing aid. The response

categories consist of ‘‘good,’’ ‘‘a little

trouble,’’ ‘‘a lot of trouble,’’ and ‘‘deaf.’’

Adults who responded ‘‘a little trouble,’’

‘‘a lot of trouble,’’ or ‘‘deaf’’ were

classified as having hearing impairment.

Heart disease—In separate

questions, respondents were asked if

they ever had been told by a doctor or

other health professional that they had

coronary heart disease, angina pectoris,

a heart attack, or any other heart

condition or disease. Persons with any

of these conditions were classified as

having heart disease.

Physical and social functioning

includes twelve types of activities: (1)

walking one-quarter of one mile (or

three city blocks); (2) standing for 2

hours; (3) stooping, bending, or

kneeling; (4) climbing 10 steps without

resting; (5) sitting for 2 hours; (6)

reaching over one’s head; (7) using

one’s fingers to grasp or handle small

objects; (8) lifting or carrying a

10-pound object (such as a full bag of

groceries); (9) pushing or pulling a large

object (such as a living room chair);

(10) going shopping, going to movies,

or attending sporting events; (11)

participating in social activities such as

visiting friends, attending clubs or

meetings, or going to parties; and (12)

activities to relax at home or for leisure

(such as reading, watching television,

sewing, or listening to music). For each

of these activities, respondents were

asked if, by themselves and without the

use of special equipment, the activity

was ‘‘not at all difficult,’’ ‘‘only a little

difficult,’’ ‘‘somewhat difficult,’’ ‘‘very

difficult,’’ ‘‘can’t do at all,’’ or ‘‘do not

do this activity.’’ The estimates shown

include responses of ‘‘somewhat

difficult,’’ ‘‘very difficult,’’ or ‘‘can’t do

at all.’’ Adults who said they ‘‘do not do

this activity’’ were excluded from the

analysis.

Serious psychological distress is

based on a series of six questions asking

about symptoms of psychological

distress experienced in the past 30 days.

The symptoms include feeling: so sad

that nothing could cheer you up,

nervous, restless or fidgety, hopeless,

that everything was an effort, and

worthless. The response options ranged

from ‘‘never’’ (score=0) to ‘‘all of the

time’’ (score=4). Items with missing

data were assigned a score of zero for

that item. A summary score for these six

items was calculated and a total score of

13 or higher was classified as ‘‘serious

psychological distress,’’ consistent with

a scoring algorithm developed by

Kessler, et al. (44).

Vision impairment—Adults are

classified as having vision impairment if

they answered ‘‘yes’’ to the question,

‘‘Do you have any trouble seeing, even

when wearing glasses or contact

lenses?’’

Health behavior terms

Healthy (body) weight is defined as

a body mass index greater than or equal

to 18.5 and less than 25. Body mass

index is based on self-reported height

and weight and calculated using the

formula:

Body Mass Index (BMI) = kg/(m2), where:

kg (kilograms) = weight in pounds/2.205, and

m (meters) = height in inches/39.37.

Cigarette smoking status is based

on lifetime and current use of cigarettes.

Never smokers are adults who had never

smoked 100 cigarettes in their entire

lifetime. Nonsmokers include never

smokers (adults who had never smoked

100 cigarettes in their lifetime) and

former smokers (adults who had smoked

at least 100 cigarettes in their lifetime

but were not currently smoking).

Leisure-time physical activity (any)

is based on responses to questions on

frequency of participation in vigorous

leisure-time physical activity lasting at

least 10 minutes and frequency of

participation in light or moderate

physical activity lasting at least 10

minutes. Adults who said they ever
National Health Statistics Reports

n Number 16n July 8, 2009 Page 31

engaged in either type of activity,

regardless of frequency or duration, are

considered to have engaged in ‘‘any

leisure-time physical activity.’’

Regular leisure-time physical

activity—Adults who engaged in

vigorous activity at least three times per

week for at least 20 minutes each time

or engaged in light or moderate

leisure-time physical activity five times

per week for at least 30 minutes each

time are considered to have engaged in

‘‘regular leisure-time physical activity.’’

Sleep is based on the question, ‘‘On

average, how many hours of sleep do

you get ina 24-hour period?’’ and is

recorded in whole hours.

Strengthening activities include

activities such as weight lifting or doing

calisthenics, regardless of frequency or

duration. These activities may overlap

with other leisure-time physical activity.

The complete NHIS sample adult

questionnaire, as well as information

about other components of NHIS, is

available from http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/

nhis.htm.
Page 32 National Health Statistics Reports n Number 16 n July 8, 2009

Suggested citation

Schoenborn CA, Heyman KM. Health

characteristics of adults aged 55 years and

over: United States, 2004–2007. National

health statistics reports; no. 16. Hyattsville,

MD: National Center for Health Statistics.

2009.

Copyright information

All material appearing in this report is in the

public domain and may be reproduced or

copied without permission; citation as to

source, however, is appreciated.

National Center for Health Statistics

Director

Edward J. Sondik, Ph.D.

Acting Co-Deputy Directors

Jennifer H. Madans, Ph.D.
 

Michael H. Sadagursky
 

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF

HEALTH & HUMAN SERVICES

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

National Center for Health Statistics

3311 Toledo Road

Hyattsville, MD 20782

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To receive this publication regularly, contact

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DHHS Publication No. (PHS) 2009–1250

CS202918-B

T34438 (07/2009)