Drinking, smoking less but chronic disease up.

• Position: Baby Boomers

While rates of smoking and excessive drinking have declined among older Americans, prevalence of chronic disease has risen, and many are unprepared to afford the costs of long-term care in a nursing home, according to a report from the Census Bureau commissioned by the National Institutes of Health. The report highlights those trends and others among America's older population, now over 40,000,000 and expected to more than double by mid century, growing to 83,700,000 people and one-fifth of the U.S. population by 2050.

"This report shows how aging in America is changing in fundamental ways," says Richard Suzman, director of NIA's Division of Behavioral and Social Research. "Not only does it provide the number of older people and their age, sex, and race, it also tells us about their health, families, communities, and future problems with caregiving, vital data to consider as we seek to meet the needs and address concerns of an aging population. The older population today is increasingly diverse on a number of fronts."

A key aspect of the report is the effect that the aging of the Baby Boom generation--those born between 1946-64--will have on the U.S. population and on society in general. Baby Boomers began to reach age 65 in 2011; between 2010-20, the older generation is projected to grow more rapidly than in any other decade since 1900.

The report points out some critical health-related issues:

* Rates of smoking and excessive alcohol consumption have declined among those 65 and older, but the percentage of overweight and obese people has increased. Obesity is associated with elevated rates of diabetes, arthritis, and impaired mobility, and...