COHORT DIFFERENCES IN DISABILITY AND DISEASE PRESENCE

Using the National Health Interview Surveys conducted from 1982 throug h 1993, this article examines cohort patterns in disability and diseas e presence for adults born between 1915 and 1959, at ages ranging from 30 to 69 years. In general, disability decreases for cohorts born bet ween 1916 and the early 1940s (for men) or the early 1950s (for women) , but begins to increase for cohorts born after those dates. Later-bor n cohorts have significantly lower levels of some diseases, most impor tantly cardiovascular diseases, arthritis, and emphysema. However, som e diseases and conditions are more prevalent in later-born cohorts: as thma, musculoskeletal disorders, and orthopedic impairments. The resul ts presented here indicate that adults barn in the late 1940s and 1950 s will be in better cardiovascular health but may be in worse musculos keletal condition when they enter old age compared with current cohort s of older persons.