Adult life experiences and health in early old age in Great Britain

In Britain and other developed countries older people comprise a large majo rity of all those reporting long term illness or disability. However, most studies of socio-demographic variations in health have focussed on those in younger age groups. Moreover approaches to the study of health variations are often fragmented. In this study we have adopted a life course approach to analyse differentials in health in early old age. The data comes from the Retirement and Retirement Plans Survey and follow-u p, a two-wave study of persons aged 55-69 in 1988/9. As well as information on current circumstances, the data set includes occupational, marital, and fertility history information. At baseline a nationally representative sam ple of the population of Great Britain were interviewed at home by trained interviewers (n = 3543). The sample was followed up and in 1994, 2247 survi vors were re-interviewed, a response rate of 70% (of survivors). The data w ere weighted to adjust for nonresponse bias. Two outcome measures were used: self rated health and presence or absence o f disability assessed from a scale derived from detailed questions on thirt een domains of disability. The severity score used was that developed for t he 1985/6 ONS Surveys of Disability. The findings indicate that health and disability status at baseline and at follow up were associated with socioeconomic and geographic variables, such as proportion of adult life spent unemployed and residence outside the Sou theast of England; demographic factors, such as early age at marriage and h igh parity; and experience of adverse events, such as the death of a child and being dismissed from work. The results show that socio-economic, demographic, and geographical and 'li fe events' factors are all associated with health status in early old age a nd that integrated, rather than bifurcated, approaches to the study of heal th differentials are needed. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights rese rved.