@info.age
FOR FAST, FREE STATISTICS ON AGING TRY '.gov'
By JIM EMERMAN
Ever tried searching for statistics on aging using the World Wide Web? Apparently, even the ability to reach millions of people with critical research information through the Internet hasn't inspired many of the country's premier research institutions to make their data more accessible to the public who so badly need this information.
Fortunately, there are exceptions. The best of the lot are found in the virtual inner sanctums of the U.S. government. If the URL (Web address) ends with ".gov," you stand a better-than-average chance of finding statistical data presented in a fairly user-friendly way.
Among the most interesting sites, those that go out of their way to capsulize useful data in "fast facts" formats, are the U.S. Bureau of the Census (www.census.gov), the National Center for Health Statistics of the Centers for Disease Control (www.cdc.gov/nchswww/default.htm) and the Bureau of Labor Statistics (http://stats.bls.gov/). These sites all offer fairly easy-to-use search features and present reports in full text.
(In many cases the Adobe Acrobat Reader software is needed to read the documents, which are in portable document format, or "PDF." The sites include links to the Adobe site where you can download the software at no charge.)
For statistics on the older population, the census report 65+ in the United States can't be beat. If you don't have access to a print copy, the entire report is available on the Census Bureau site as a PDF file. Another source of a lot of statistical data is the Administration on Aging (AoA). The section of their Web site that includes this information is found at www.aoa.dhhs.gov/aoa/stats/statpage.html. Here, among many other resources, you will find:
- "A Profile of Older Americans," an electronic version of the popular brochure prepared by AoAand the American Association of Retired Persons, with the latest key statistics on older Americans in 11 key subject areas
- "Population and Housing Patterns Among Older Americans," a series of tables based on 1990 census data covering such key aspects of aging as mobility and self-care limitations, income and poverty, marital status and housing and living arrangements
- "Online Statistical Data on the Aging," a convenient set of links to online statistical information on the demographic characteristics, health and social and economic conditions of older people. Includes links to almost all known online resources including statistics from the Census Bureau and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and much more.
ONE-STOP ACCESS
For one-stop access to the statistical reports of more than 70 federal agencies, check out FedStats at www.fedstats.gov/. The agencies whose data are linked to this site include the Bureau of Economic Analysis, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Bureau of Justice Statistics, Bureau of the Census, National Center for Health Statistics, Social Security Administration, Center for Mental Health Service, Center for Substance Abuse Prevention, Health Care Financing Administration, Health Resources and Services Admininistration, and all the National Institutes of Health, plus many more.
In addition to links to these agencies (that allow you to stay in FedStat sites while looking up facts in other places), FedStat also provides an AZ list of topics for which links are provided.
Jim Emerman is the associate executive director of the American Society on Aging. "@info.age" is sponsored by IBM Corporation.
American Society on Aging
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