Table 1.
Percentage distribution and means for the variables included in the regression models for the whole sample and broad age groups
| Variables in the models | Respondents at wave 2 (Longitudinal sample) | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Age 50–64 | Age 65+ | All | |
| Dependent variable (%) | |||
| Decline in SRH between waves | 30.9 | 32.4 | 31.5 |
| Improvement in SRH between waves | 20.6 | 19.4 | 20.1 |
| No change | 48.5 | 48.2 | 48.4 |
| Socio-demographic characteristics | |||
| Age (years) | 58.2 | 74.0 | 66.59 |
| Sex (%) | |||
| Male | 43.8 | 46.3 | 45.1 |
| Female | 56.2 | 53.7 | 54.9 |
| Years in education (wave 1) (%) | |||
| 0–6 years | 13.4 | 25.8 | 19.9 |
| 7–12 years | 49.0 | 52.4 | 50.8 |
| 13 years or more | 37.6 | 21.8 | 29.3 |
| Self-rated health at baseline (%) | |||
| Excellent | 15.2 | 8.0 | 11.4 |
| Very good | 26.3 | 18.1 | 21.9 |
| Good | 39.2 | 41.9 | 40.6 |
| Fair | 15.8 | 25.4 | 20.8 |
| Poor | 3.6 | 6.7 | 5.2 |
| Health at baseline (means) | |||
| Self-rated health (1 best–5 worst) | 2.66 | 3.04 | 2.86 |
| No. of chronic conditions (0–15) | 1.19 | 1.82 | 1.49 |
| No. of somatic symptoms (0–12) | 1.20 | 1.62 | 1.43 |
| No. of mobility difficulties (0–10) | 0.86 | 1.63 | 1.26 |
| No. of ADLs (0–6) | 0.05 | 0.11 | 0.08 |
| No. of IADLs (0–7) | 0.07 | 0.17 | 0.13 |
| No. of depressive symptoms (EURO-D; 0–12) | 2.12 | 2.30 | 2.22 |
| Orientation in time score (0 worst–4 best) | 3.89 | 3.80 | 3.84 |
| Numeracy score (1 worst–5 best) | 3.61 | 3.22 | 3.41 |
| Changes in health between waves 1 and 2 | |||
| Increase in the no. of conditions/symptoms/difficulties (%) | |||
| Chronic conditions | 27.2 | 31.6 | 28.6 |
| Somatic symptoms | 31.9 | 39.2 | 35.8 |
| Mobility difficulties | 19.8 | 32.7 | 26.6 |
| ADLs | 3.0 | 8.8 | 6.1 |
| IADLs | 5.5 | 14.5 | 10.3 |
| Depressive symptoms (EURO-D) | 32.3 | 34.8 | 33.6 |
| Worse orientation in time score | 7.1 | 11.7 | 9.5 |
| Worse numeracy score | 21.0 | 25.4 | 23.3 |
| Decrease in the no. of conditions/symptoms/difficulties (%) | |||
| Chronic conditions | 22.9 | 27.6 | 25.4 |
| Somatic symptoms | 23.8 | 24.4 | 24.1 |
| Mobility difficulties | 19.3 | 22.9 | 21.2 |
| ADLs | 3.3 | 5.8 | 4.6 |
| IADLs | 4.8 | 8.4 | 6.7 |
| Depressive symptoms (EURO-D) | 37.8 | 35.8 | 36.8 |
| Better orientation in time score | 7.7 | 11.0 | 9.5 |
| Better numeracy score | 27.0 | 26.6 | 26.8 |
| Health problems between waves 1 and 2 (%) | |||
| Heart attack | 1.0 | 2.2 | 1.7 |
| Stroke | 0.7 | 2.3 | 1.5 |
| Cancer | 2.1 | 3.0 | 2.6 |
| Health-related behaviours (%) | |||
| Smoking | |||
| Non-smoker | 46.0 | 57.0 | 54.4 |
| Smoker | 27.4 | 13.0 | 19.4 |
| Ex-smoker | 26.6 | 30.0 | 26.2 |
| BMI | |||
| BMI < 30 | 82.3 | 82.7 | 82.5 |
| Obese (BMI ≥ 30) | 17.7 | 17.3 | 17.5 |
| Levels of activity | |||
| Some moderate | 95.8 | 89.9 | 92.6 |
| Very low | 4.2 | 10.1 | 7.4 |
| Drinking | |||
| Drinking less | 86.0 | 85.9 | 86.0 |
| Drinking at least 2 U of alcohol five to six times a week | 14.0 | 14.1 | 14.0 |
| Changes in health-related behaviour between waves 1 and 2 (%) | |||
| No change | 94.7 | 88.9 | 91.6 |
| Decrease in levels of physical activity | 2.8 | 7.3 | 5.2 |
| Increase in levels of physical activity | 2.5 | 3.8 | 3.2 |
| Country of residence (%) | |||
| Austria | 5.2 | 6.8 | 5.9 |
| Germany | 7.9 | 9.1 | 8.6 |
| Sweden | 10.9 | 11.3 | 11.1 |
| Netherlands | 10.4 | 9.0 | 9.6 |
| Spain | 5.7 | 7.1 | 6.5 |
| Italy | 9.1 | 10.4 | 9.8 |
| France | 10.3 | 10.1 | 10.2 |
| Denmark | 7.3 | 6.6 | 6.9 |
| Greece | 12.9 | 11.1 | 12.0 |
| Switzerland | 3.8 | 3.9 | 3.9 |
| Belgium | 16.5 | 14.6 | 15.5 |
| Sample size | 7,934 | 8,922 | 16,856 |