TABLE 2. Percentage of subjective cognitive decline* among unpaid caregivers† and noncaregivers aged ≥45 years, by selected characteristics — Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, 22 states,§ 2015–2019.
| Characteristic | Total unweighted no. of caregivers¶ | Caregivers with SCD, weighted** % (95% CI) | Total unweighted no. of noncaregivers¶ | Noncaregivers with SCD, weighted** % (95% CI) | p-value†† |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Overall
|
21,238
|
12.6 (11.7–13.5)
|
72,366
|
10.2 (9.7–10.7)
|
<0.001
|
|
Demographic characteristic
| |||||
|
Age group, yrs
| |||||
| 45–64 |
12,049 |
12.4 (11.3–13.6) |
34,858 |
9.4 (8.8–10.0) |
<0.001 |
| ≥65 |
9,189 |
13.0 (11.7–14.4) |
37,508 |
11.4 (10.7–12.1) |
0.03 |
|
Sex
| |||||
| Men |
7,615 |
13.5 (12.1–15.0) |
31,370 |
9.4 (8.8–10.1) |
<0.001 |
| Women |
13,623 |
12.0 (10.9–13.2) |
40,993 |
10.9 (10.2–11.6) |
0.09 |
|
Race/Ethnicity
| |||||
| White, non-Hispanic |
16,689 |
12.9 (11.9–13.9) |
56,555 |
9.7 (9.2–10.2) |
<0.001 |
| Black, non-Hispanic |
2,226 |
12.0 (9.5–14.5) |
7,184 |
12.7 (11.1–14.3) |
0.6 |
| Asian/Pacific Islander, American Indian/Alaska Native, Other race/Multiracial, non-Hispanic§§ |
1,312 |
14.3 (8.9–19.8) |
4,476 |
9.9 (7.9–11.9) |
0.1 |
| Hispanic |
673 |
9.6 (6.2–13.0) |
2,963 |
10.8 (8.9–12.7) |
0.6 |
|
Education level
| |||||
| High school graduate or less |
7,041 |
15.0 (13.3–16.6) |
27,920 |
7.9 (7.4–8.3) |
0.06 |
| Some college or more |
14,160 |
11.3 (10.3–12.3) |
44,217 |
13.2 (12.4–14.1) |
<0.001 |
|
Employment status
| |||||
| Employed/Self-employed |
8,933 |
7.6 (6.5–8.7) |
27,914 |
4.8 (4.3–5.2) |
<0.001 |
| Unemployed |
829 |
21.0 (14.6–27.4) |
1,994 |
14.8 (11.6–18.0) |
0.09 |
| Unable to work |
1,900 |
37.2 (33.1–41.4) |
6,869 |
31.5 (29.1–33.8) |
0.01 |
| Other¶¶ |
9,460 |
11.5 (10.3–12.6) |
35,185 |
10.4 (9.7–11.1) |
0.1 |
|
Health-related characteristic
| |||||
|
Any chronic condition***
| |||||
| Yes |
14,302 |
16.4 (15.1–17.6) |
47,206 |
13.4 (13.1–14.5) |
<0.001 |
| No |
6,777 |
5.7 (4.6–6.7) |
24,620 |
4.3 (3.8–4.8) |
0.02 |
|
History of depression
| |||||
| Yes |
4,915 |
28.3 (25.8–30.8) |
12,582 |
27.2 (25.9–29.4) |
0.7 |
| No |
16,239 |
8.0 (7.2–8.9) |
59,462 |
6.8 (6.4–7.2) |
0.01 |
|
General health status
| |||||
| Good, very good, or excellent |
16,454 |
8.1 (7.4–9.0) |
55,300 |
6.1 (5.7–6.5) |
<0.001 |
| Fair or poor |
4,734 |
26.8 (24.3–29.4) |
16,855 |
23.3 (21.9–24.8) |
0.02 |
|
No. of days physical health was not good in past 30 days
| |||||
| None |
12,106 |
6.5 (5.7–7.4) |
43,638 |
5.1 (4.7–5.5) |
0.003 |
| 1–13 |
5,196 |
15.2 (13.2–17.1) |
14,985 |
13.2 (12.0–14.5) |
0.09 |
| ≥14 |
3,550 |
28.2 (25.2–31.1) |
11,878 |
24.7 (23.0–26.2) |
0.04 |
|
No. of days mental health was not good in past 30 days
| |||||
| None |
13,363 |
6.2 (5.5–6.9) |
52,915 |
5.5 (5.1–5.9) |
0.1 |
| 1–13 |
4,692 |
16.1 (14.0–18.1) |
11,691 |
14.7 (13.4–16.0) |
0.3 |
| ≥14 |
2,853 |
34.4 (30.7–38.0) |
6,424 |
36.5 (33.9–39.2) |
0.3 |
|
No. of days health prevented regular activities in past 30 days
| |||||
| None |
6,469 |
11.4 (9.8–13.0) |
18,832 |
9.5 (8.7–10.3) |
0.03 |
| 1–13 |
3,159 |
19.0 (16.4–21.7) |
8,211 |
16.5 (14.7–18.2) |
0.1 |
| ≥14 | 2,340 | 33.9 (30.1–37.8) | 7,615 | 33.8 (31.4–36.2) | 0.9 |
Abbreviation: SCD = subjective cognitive decline.
* SCD was defined as the self-reported experience of worsening confusion or memory loss in the past year.
† Caregiving was defined as providing care to a family member or friend with a health condition or disability in the past 30 days.
§ The following 22 U.S. states that included both caregiving and SCD modules in the same survey year during 2015–2019 are included (most recent year used): Alabama (2015), Florida (2015), Hawaii (2017), Illinois (2015), Iowa (2015), Louisiana (2015), Maryland (2019), Mississippi (2015), Missouri (2016), Montana (2016), Nebraska (2015), New Jersey (2018), New York (2019), Oregon (2019), South Carolina (2015), Tennessee (2019), Texas (2019), Utah (2019), Virginia (2019), West Virginia (2015), Wisconsin (2015), and Wyoming (2015).
¶ Categories might not sum to the sample total because of missing responses.
** Estimates are weighted to each state’s adult population.
†† T-tests were used to determine statistically significant differences between caregivers and noncaregivers with SCD for each level of selected characteristics at p<0.05.
§§ Asian/Pacific Islander, American Indian/Alaska Native, and Other or multiracial non-Hispanic persons were combined into one group because of small sample sizes.
¶¶ Homemaker, student, or retired.
*** Any chronic condition was determined by an affirmative response to the question, “Has a doctor or other health professional ever told you that you had any of the following? For each, tell me Yes, No, or You’re Not Sure: asthma (current); heart attack, angina, or coronary heart disease; a stroke; cancer other than skin cancer; chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, emphysema, or chronic bronchitis; some form of arthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, gout, lupus, or fibromyalgia; kidney disease, not including kidney stones, bladder infections, or incontinence; or diabetes, not including gestational, borderline, or prediabetes?”