Demographic and Health Trends in the Elderly

This chapter sets out information on the demographic changes that have occurred this century in England and Wales, with particular emphasis on aspects related to the elderly. It then considers what is known about the major diseases killing the elderly and trends in these diseases, and reviews other statistics on the health problems of the elderly. The scope is restricted to routine statistics; data are available on mortality from all causes, cancer trends (incidence and survival as well as mortality), diagnoses for hospital in-patients, sample material from three periodic studies on contact in primary medical care, and annual surveys on the general level of disability in the population. Consideration is given to the facilities and support that are utilised in caring for the elderly, and an attempt is made to identify the proportion of the population by age and sex receiving care from the main agencies. Limited material is also available on selected facets of ‘behaviour’: diet, alcohol consumption and smoking. Consideration of these issues is relevant to the health of the general population and health of the elderly. The final section discusses projections of the elderly population over the coming forty years in the United Kingdom and considers the possible degree of handicap in these elderly.