Heidi Uhlmann, age 15, of Harrisburg, Pa., for her question:
WHEN DOES A PERSON REACH OLD AGE?
"Old age" is a term that cannot be defined exactly. First, the aging process differs among individuals. Sometimes a person of advanced age has a healthier body and more active mind than a much younger person has. Also, an age considered "old" in some societies may be regarded as relatively young in others.
Most nations now define old age for legal purposes only. For example, in Canada and the United States, the governments consider 65 as the legal beginning of old age.
In some areas of the world where people have a short life expectancy, they may be considered old by the age of 40. In other countries, a person is still considered young at 70.
About 10 percent of the estimated U.S. 1990 population of 250 million is over 65. This percentage has more than doubled since 1900 when old people made up only about 4 percent of the population.
The over 65 age group today in the U.S. includes about four women to every three men. It also includes a higher percentage of whites and people born in other countries than does the population as a whole.
The average income of the elderly is only about half that of young people, mainly because most old people have retired. But even those who still work full time earn less than younger people.
Most elderly people receive federal Social Security payments. Many also receive funds from earnings, savings, private investments or pension plans.
Public health insurance pays about three fourths of the total medical expense of the elderly at the present time. Some people who are extremely poor receive financial and medical assistance from state, county or private welfare agencies.
Most old people in the U.S. value their independence and want .to . be free to choose where and how they live.
A higher proportion of the elderly than of young people live in rural areas, small towns and the poorer sections of large cities. The government classifies about one fifth of the housing units occupied by the elderly as substandard. Much of this housing lacks such basic conveniences as private bathrooms and hot water.
About 70 percent of the elderly own their own homes. Almost 25 percent live with their children. Fewer than 5 percent of those in the old age classification live in hospitals, nursing homes or homes for the aged. More and more well to do elderly live in retirement communities.