Table 1.
Characteristics of U.S. Adults Aged ≥50 Years, by Sex and Survey Period, NHANES 1999–2010
| Characteristic | Men | Women | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Prevalence (95% CI) by survey periods | Prevalence (95% CI) by survey periods | |||
| 1999–2004 | 2005–2010 | 1999–2004 | 2005–2010 | |
| n | 1,806 | 2,145 | 1,873 | 2,171 |
| Population size (millions) | 35.7 | 41.2 | 42.8 | 48.3 |
| Age group (years), % | ||||
| 50–64 | 60.3 (57.0, 63.5) | 60.7 (58.0, 63.3) | 56.8 (54.3, 59.4) | 56.3 (52.9, 59.7) |
| 65–74 | 24.3 (22.1, 26.8) | 23.3 (20.9, 25.9) | 22.8 (20.1, 25.7) | 23.6 (21.1, 26.2) |
| ≥75 | 15.3 (13.6, 17.2) | 16.0 (14.5, 17.6) | 20.4 (18.2, 22.7) | 20.1 (17.5, 23.0) |
| Race/ethnicity, %a | ||||
| Non-Hispanic white | 81.2 (76.6, 85.1) | 78.1 (74.1, 81.6) | 79.4 (75.1, 83.1) | 77.6 (73.6, 81.2) |
| Non-Hispanic black | 7.6 (6.0, 9.4) | 9.5 (7.6, 11.8) | 9.0 (6.9, 11.8) | 10.0 (7.9, 12.6) |
| Mexican American | 3.8 (2.6, 5.4) | 4.7 (3.3, 6.8) | 3.5 (2.2, 5.5) | 4.6 (3.3, 6.5) |
| Other | 7.4 (4.9, 11.1) | 7.7 (5.9, 10.2) | 8.1 (5.5, 11.7) | 7.7 (6.0, 10.0) |
| PIR group, % | ||||
| <1.0 | 8.0 (6.4, 10.0) | 7.9 (6.6, 9.5) | 11.6 (9.4, 14.3) | 10.1 (8.6, 11.8) |
| 1–2.9 | 33.6 (30.0, 37.4) | 34.7 (31.5, 38.1) | 41.0 (37.8, 44.4) | 40.1 (36.8, 43.5) |
| ≥3.0 | 58.4 (54.6, 62.2) | 57.3 (53.6, 61.0) | 47.3 (43.8, 50.9) | 49.9 (46.0, 53.7) |
| Education, % | ||||
| <High school | 23.8 (21.3, 26.6) | 20.4 (17.8, 23.2) | 25.4 (22.6, 28.3) | 20.2 (17.8, 22.9) |
| High school graduate | 22.4 (19.5, 25.7) | 23.1 (20.1, 26.6) | 27.8 (25.3, 30.5) | 28.9 (26.3, 31.6) |
| Some college or higher | 53.8 (49.2, 58.2) | 56.5 (51.8, 61.1) | 46.8 (43.5, 50.1) | 50.9 (47.6, 54.3) |
| Living alone, %b | ||||
| No | 88.0 (85.9, 89.8)* | 83.7 (81.9, 85.5)* | 74.4 (71.7, 77.0) | 75.8 (73.1, 78.2) |
| Yes | 12.0 (10.2, 14.1)* | 16.3 (14.5, 18.1)* | 25.6 (23.0, 28.3) | 24.2 (21.8, 26.9) |
| BMI group (kg/m2), % | ||||
| Normal (<25.0) | 25.9 (23.6, 28.4) | 24.0 (21.5, 26.6) | 33.9 (30.4, 37.6)** | 30.5 (27.8, 33.3)** |
| Overweight (25.0–29.9) | 42.5 (39.0, 46.0) | 39.4 (37.0, 41.8) | 32.1 (29.0, 35.4)** | 30.5 (27.9, 33.3)** |
| Obese (≥30.0) | 31.6 (29.0, 34.3) | 36.7 (33.4, 40.0) | 34.0 (31.0, 37.1)** | 39.0 (36.6, 41.4)** |
Note: Data presented are weighted percentages unless otherwise noted. Boldface indicates statistical significance (*p=0.003; **p=0.044).
a
Individuals for other racial/ethnic groups are included in the denominator but their separate estimates are not presented.
b
p-values for equal proportions were calculated from an F-test.
NHANES, National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey; PIR, poverty-income ratio.