Open Space >> By the Numbers

65 and Up: Rising and Falling Numbers

2012-05-01, Department, Photography by Madison, Wisconsin, School and Community Recreation

(The following statistics come from U.S. Census Bureau, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the American Geriatric Society, and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.)
 

3.1 million: The number of Americans 65 and older in 1900 (representing a total of 4 percent of the U.S. population at that time).

72 million: The number of Americans expected to be age 65 and older by 2030 (representing a projected total of 20 percent of the U.S. population by that time).

2011: The year the first Baby Boomers, the generation of Americans born between 1946 and 1964, turned 65.

22: The percentage of the U.S. population aged 65 and older who report engaging regularly in physical activity.

17: the average number of daily minutes Americans 65 and older spend engaging in physical activity.

30: The average number of daily minutes of physical activity recommended by the U.S. Surgeon General for reaping the benefits of exercise.

257: The average number of minutes Americans 65 and older spend watching TV each day.

40: The percentage of Americans 65 and older who report having difficulty completing at least one basic activity of daily living.

30: The percentage of those 65 and older who will experience a fall each year.

6: The percentage of annual emergency room visits that are fall-related injuries.

$32.3 billion: The projected social costs of falling by 2020.

3: The number of exercise types (balance, gait, and strength) recommended by the American Geriatrics Society for combining basic fitness with fall prevention.

3: The number of those recommended exercise types that can be achieved by regular walking.