HIV/AIDS and Older Adults in the United States
This e-newsletter is the 18th in a series funded by the University of Michigan Demography Center. This issue, "HIV/AIDS and Older Adults in the United States," reviews research sponsored by the National Institute of Aging, and other research, on aging and HIV/AIDS. (December 2009)

The NIA Demography Centers 2009
The NIA Demography and Economics of Aging Centers Program has been an important mechanism for promoting this research. Founded by NIA with supplemental support from the Office of Behavioral and Social Science Research and the Fogarty Center at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the program has been instrumental in constructing critical databases, attracting and developing scholars, establishing international and interdisciplinary networks, and informing public policy. The program has expanded the demography and economics of aging rapidly in the United States, and now includes 14 Centers and more than 500 scientists. The program’s reach is global, with almost all 14 Centers involved in international projects, helping to develop the fields of demography and economics of aging in many countries. (November 2009)

Public Policy, Financial Decisions, and the Health of Older Adults
The financial decisions facing older adults as they reach retirement age are increasingly more difficult. Even before recent financial crises brought into question the financial decisions made by individuals of all ages, cognitive aging patterns and the prevalence of dementia raised concerns about the ability of many older adults to manage their financial resources. Studies in behavioral economics and neuroeconomics have shed light on how individuals make decisions and have implications for the design of public and private pension plans and for management of chronic diseases. (October 2009)

Aging, Family Structure, and Health
Social and intimate connections change with age. These changes affect and are affected by health. Social connections come from a variety of sources—family and friends, shared living spaces, interaction with neighbors, and participation in community or religious organizations. For many people as they get older, their family structure changes as children leave home and spouses die. Also, as their friends die, the networks of older persons shrink. Many try to remain socially active through involvement with community organizations, church, and neighbors, but confronted with fewer and less intimate connections, older people may disengage from the social world. (October 2009)

HIV/AIDS and Older Persons in Developing Countries
John Knodel has studied the involvement of older people in the HIV/AIDS epidemic, specifically in Southeast Asia. He is research professor emeritus at the Population Studies Center and professor emeritus of sociology at the University of Michigan. In this interview, Knodel disccuses the importance of looking at HIV/AIDS effects on older persons, research findings from Cambodia and Thailand, and the research still needed to understand how HIV/AIDS involves the elderly and what policy responses are needed. (November 2009)

PRB Discuss Online: How Will Global Aging Affect Economic Development?
The number of people over age 60 is expected to reach 1 billion by 2020 and almost 2 billion by 2050, representing 22 percent of the world’s population. This growth in the size and share of the elderly population will affect many aspects of economic development, including national labor forces: The ratio of people in older dependent age groups will increase relative to those in working-age groups. However, declining fertility rates may counterbalance this shift by reducing the number of people in younger dependent age groups. In addition, the new generation of older people will be healthier than previous generations and may remain active in the labor force for longer. Along with continued increases in the female labor force, these circumstances may alleviate the economic burden of global aging. David Bloom, economist and demographer at the Harvard School of Public Health, answered questions on this topic during a PRB Discuss Online. Read a transcript of the questions and answers. (June 2009)

Gender Differences in Health Among the Elderly in China
Men and women face distinct challenges in late life. Paradoxically, men tend to have shorter lives but women have more health problems at any given age. Addressing why women live longer but have more health problems and why men die earlier can help reduce health care and long-term care costs for the elderly and narrow the gender health gap. Toshiko Kaneda, Population Reference Bureau; Zachary Zimmer, University of Utah; and Xianghua Fang and Zhe Tang, Capital Medical University, examined a sample of older adults in Beijing to determine gender differences in health and mortality after a five-year period. (June 2009)

Social Support, Networks, and Happiness
This e-newsletter is the 17th in a series funded by the University of Michigan Demography Center. This issue, "Social Support, Networks, and Happiness," reviews research sponsored by the National Institute of Aging, and other research, on the relationships between aging and social connections. (June 2009)

The Changing Demography of U.S. Flight Attendants
Over the last several decades, many industries have experienced significant structural changes that have affected their employees. The airline industry, for example, has faced major policy and economic forces that have changed the demography of its workers, especially its flight attendants. Flight attendants have become older compared with the overall U.S. workforce over the last several decades. The ongoing economic crisis suggests that the population of flight attendants will age even more in the coming years as many workers are likely to postpone their retirement. (June 2009)

Effects of Early Life on Elderly Health
This e-newsletter is the 16th in a series funded by the University of Michigan Demography Center. This issue, "Effects of Early Life on Elderly Health," reviews research sponsored by the National Institute of Aging, and other research, on the effects of early life on adult and elderly health. (April 2009)