Table 1.
Demographics of US Adults Aged 20+ Years in Each NHANES Cycle, 1999–2016a
| NHANES Cycle |
|||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1999–2000 (n=4237) | 2001–2002 (n=4744) | 2003–2004 (n=4448) | 2005–2006 (n=4520) | 2007–2008 (n=5419) | 2009–2010 (n=5762) | 2011–2012 (n=4801) | 2013–2014 (n=5047) | 2015–2016 (n=5017) | |
| N (Weighted %) b | |||||||||
| Age group (years) | |||||||||
| 20–34 | 1136 (30%) | 1320 (28%) | 1207 (29%) | 1378 (28%) | 1260 (28%) | 1442 (28%) | 1317 (28%) | 1321 (28%) | 1273 (28%) |
| 35–49 | 1035 (31%) | 1258 (33%) | 1044 (29%) | 1141 (30%) | 1368 (30%) | 1522 (29%) | 1178 (27%) | 1322 (26%) | 1244 (25%) |
| 50–64 | 929 (21%) | 1011 (22%) | 901 (24%) | 953 (24%) | 1395 (26%) | 1419 (26%) | 1274 (28%) | 1298 (27%) | 1290 (26%) |
| ≥65 | 1137 (18%) | 1155 (17%) | 1296 (18%) | 1048 (18%) | 1396 (17%) | 1379 (17%) | 1032 (18%) | 1106 (19%) | 1210 (21%) |
| Sex | |||||||||
| Male | 1978 (48%) | 2250 (48%) | 2135 (48%) | 2163 (48%) | 2661 (47%) | 2789 (48%) | 2394 (49%) | 2414 (48%) | 2415 (48%) |
| Female | 2259 (52%) | 2494 (52%) | 2313 (52%) | 2357 (52%) | 2758 (53%) | 2973 (52%) | 2407 (51%) | 2633 (52%) | 2602 (52%) |
| Race/ Ethnicity | |||||||||
| Non-Hispanic White | 1891 (70%) | 2494 (73%) | 2391 (73%) | 2276 (73%) | 2547 (70%) | 2786 (69%) | 1842 (67%) | 2233 (66%) | 1711 (64%) |
| Non-Hispanic Black | 792 (11%) | 890 (11%) | 867 (11%) | 1012 (11%) | 1136 (11%) | 1025 (11%) | 1274 (11%) | 1009 (11%) | 1060 (11%) |
| Hispanic | 1421 (15%) | 1200 (12%) | 1016 (11%) | 1049 (11%) | 1525 (13%) | 1647 (14%) | 932 (14%) | 1125 (15%) | 1543 (15%) |
| Other | 133 (5%) | 160 (4%) | 174 (5%) | 183 (5%) | 211 (5%) | 304 (6%) | 753 (8%) | 680 (8%) | 703 (10%) |
| Education level | |||||||||
| Less than high school graduate | 1633 (25%) | 1421 (19%) | 1288 (18%) | 1234 (17%) | 1665 (20%) | 1634 (19%) | 1102 (16%) | 1028 (15%) | 1150 (14%) |
| High school graduate or GED c | 957 (26%) | 1110 (25%) | 1111 (26%) | 1093 (25%) | 1340 (26%) | 1316 (22%) | 1008 (20%) | 1141 (22%) | 1108 (21%) |
| Some college | 954 (28%) | 1240 (29%) | 1216 (32%) | 1290 (31%) | 1398 (29%) | 1624 (31%) | 1463 (33%) | 1578 (33%) | 1492 (33%) |
| College graduate or above | 679 (21%) | 967 (27%) | 827 (23%) | 901 (26%) | 1012 (25%) | 1175 (28%) | 1225 (31%) | 1297 (30%) | 1265 (32%) |
| Ratio of family income to poverty level d | |||||||||
| <1.30 | 1106 (21%) | 1190 (20%) | 1209 (20%) | 1115 (17%) | 1498 (20%) | 1746 (21%) | 1564 (24%) | 1592 (24%) | 1429 (19%) |
| 1.30–1.849 | 516 (10%) | 572 (10%) | 570 (10%) | 540 (9%) | 699 (11%) | 702 (10%) | 594 (10%) | 519 (10%) | 658 (10%) |
| 1.85–2.99 | 664 (15%) | 840 (17%) | 830 (19%) | 838 (19%) | 985 (17%) | 923 (16%) | 702 (17%) | 749 (15%) | 916 (18%) |
| ≥3.00 | 1354 (42%) | 1827 (48%) | 1602 (46%) | 1832 (52%) | 1752 (45%) | 1857 (46%) | 1574 (44%) | 1826 (45%) | 1534 (44%) |
a
NHANES = National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey
b
Percentages (%) were adjusted for survey weights.
c
GED = general equivalency diploma
d
Ratio of family income to poverty level is the ratio of family income to the federal poverty threshold adjusted for household size. For reference, the federal threshold in 2014 for a family of four was $23,850/y. A family of four earning $44,123/y would have a ratio of 1.85. A ratio < 1.30 indicates a lower level of income and a ratio ≥ 3 indicates a higher level of income.