The true profile of the elderly in Japan
The White Paper reports that, as of October 2003, there were 24.31 million elderly people over the age of 65 in Japan, accounting for 19% of the total population. Of these, 10.26 million were men, surpassing the 10 million mark for the first time. In addition, as of September 2003, there were a little over 20,000 people throughout Japan who were aged 100 and above. This number has doubled in only 5 years.
The White Paper revealed some interesting findings that shed light on the real image of today's Japanese elderly. Here is a brief summary.
The elderly and their families: As of 2002, a total of 16.85 million households had members over the age of 65, accounting for 36.6% of Japan's total number of households of 46.01 million. By breakdown, 3.41 million households, or 20.2%, were "single-person households", exceeding the 20% mark for the first time. Meanwhile, 4.82 million households, or 28.6%, comprised "husband-and-wife couples-only"; 2.63 million households, or 15.6%, comprised parents and their unmarried children only; and 4 million households, or 23.7%, comprised three generations of family members. The percentage of three-generation households has declined but that of single-person households and couples-only households has increased.
Outlook for the elderly population: The White Paper predicts that the elderly population will continue to increase sharply until 2020, then more or less stabilize thereafter. On the other hand, since the total population is expected to decline, the percentage of the elderly will continue to grow. By 2015 and 2050, old people will account for 26.0% and 35.7%, respectively, of the population, the highest levels among all developed countries.
Annual income of elderly households: In 2001, these households had an average income of 3.046 million yen, which is only about half the average income of all households in Japan (6.02 million yen). However, the margin of difference narrows if the average income per household member is studied: 1.953 million yen for elderly households versus 2.135 million yen for all households. This is because elderly households have fewer members, on average.
In terms of average personal income, men over the age of 65 earned 3.036 million yen, and women, 1.124 million yen. As seen, women earned only slightly over one-third that of their male counterparts. Similarly, the share of the elderly over the age of 65 with no income was 4.4% for men and 16.5% for women, showing that there were many more women with this status than men.
Status of savings of households headed by elderly persons aged 65 and over: In 2002, these households had savings averaging 24.2 million yen, or approximately 1.4 times more than what total households saved (16.88 million yen). Close to 20% (18.6% to be exact) of all households headed by elderly persons had savings exceeding 40 million yen.
US$=\108 (July 1, 2004)
Employment of the elderly: Among men, the percentage of employed persons was 89.9% between the ages of 55 and 59, 66.5% between the ages of 60 and 64, and 51.6% between the ages of 65 and 69. Additionally, of the unemployed persons aged 60 to 64, who made up 33.5% of this age group, more than 50% wished to be employed, as did close to 40% of the unemployed persons aged 65 to 69 (48.4%).
Among women, meanwhile, the percentage of employed persons was 41.5% between the ages of 60 and 64, and 28.7% between the ages of 65 and 69. Of the unemployed persons, more than 30% of those between the ages of 60 and 64 (58.5%) and more than 20% of those between the ages of 65 and 69 (71.3%) wished to be employed.
Health status: In 2001, of the 1,000 elderly persons over the age of 65 (excluding those hospitalized), 502.7 had subjective symptoms associated with illness or injury. Similarly, of the 1,000 elderly persons over the age of 65 (excluding those hospitalized), 235.0 had physical problems that affected/impaired their daily activities, outings, work, housework, academic work, exercises, and/or sports.
As to what they made sure of doing in their daily lives to maintain and improve their health, the largest number of people, or 60.4%, cited "taking enough rest and sleep," followed by "maintaining a regular daily routine" (53.0%), and "eating nutritionally well-balanced meals" (49.5%).
Of those approved under the nursing insurance system as individuals requiring nursing care or assistance, 3.324 million people were aged 65 and older as of the end of FY2002.
Outing status: The largest number of people (48.2%) said that they go out almost every day, followed by those who go out two or three times a week (22.3%), and those who go out four or five times a week (15.7%). By sex, the percentage of those going out almost every day was higher among men than among women, while that of those who go out once a week or less was higher in women than in men. By age strata, the higher the age, the lower the percentage of people who go out almost every day and the higher the percentage of those who go out once a week or less.
In 1980, 4.3% of men and 11.2% of women over the age of 65 lived by themselves. These shares had risen sharply in 2000 to 8.0% among men and 17.9% among women. The number of the elderly living alone is expected to continue increasing, with a particularly sharp increase anticipated in the percentage of male elderly persons living alone.
These are the circumstances in which elderly Japanese people are now being placed, and will find themselves in the near future. It would interesting to learn what you, the readers, think about this report.
