Facts and Feelings about Disease Prevention and Health Promotion - Most Americans Feel Fine

When asked how they rate their own health and the health of their families, more than two-thirds of Americans report that their households enjoy very good or excellent health, and the proportion that feel this way has remained consistent from 1997 to 2001. (See Figure 10.1.) More than one-third of the survey respondents considered their families and themselves to be in excellent health, although more men (37.4 percent) than women (34.5 percent) gave themselves this top rating. Only 6.8 percent rated their health status as fair, and only 2.4 percent said their health was poor. (See Figure 10.2.)

Because many health problems occur more frequently among older adults (age sixty-five and older), it is not surprising that fewer older adults assess their health as excellent or very good than people younger than age eighteen years old or those age eighteen to sixty-four. Figure 10.3 shows how self-assessed health status changes with age. The percentage of people of either sex whose health was assessed as excellent or very good decreased with age: 82.6 percent for those aged under eighteen years, 66.6 percent for those aged eighteen to sixty-four years, and 38.6 percent for those aged sixty-five years and older. (See Figure 10.3.) Self-assessed health status also varies by race and ethnicity, with more non-Hispanic whites reporting their health as excellent or very good (70.8 percent) than Hispanic people (57.8 percent) and non-Hispanic blacks (56.9 percent). (See Figure 10.4.) These differences may reflect the fact that racial and ethnic minority groups have been identified as medically underserved populations in many parts of the United States.

Few Americans take advantage of corporate wellness programs to help them stay healthy, according to the results of a November 5, 2003, Harris Interactive poll, although one-fourth know that their employers offer them. Only about 9 percent of employees responded that they participate in programs focusing on exercise (5 percent), weight loss (2 percent), diet and nutrition (2 percent), and smoking cessation (less than 0.5 percent). Of those who participated in wellness programs, almost all (99 percent) reported that they were "very helpful" (44 percent) or "somewhat helpful" (55 percent). Other wellness programs offered include alcohol or drug abuse assistance programs, psychological and family counseling, or help or counseling for those with health or medical problems.