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How we fall apart: Similarities of human aging in 10 European countries

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  • Abeliansky, Ana Lucia
  • Strulik, Holger

Abstract

We analyze human aging, understood as health deficit accumulation, for a panel of European individuals. For that purpose, we use four waves of the Survey of Health, Aging and Retirement in Europe (SHARE dataset) and construct a health deficit index. Results from log-linear regressions suggest that, on average, elderly European men and women develop about 2.5 percent more health deficits from one birthday to the next. In non-linear regression (akin to the Gompertz-Makeham model), however, we find much greater rates of aging and large differences between men and women as well as between countries. Interestingly, these differences follow a particular regularity (akin to the compensation effect of mortality). They suggest an age at which average health deficits converge for men and women and across countries.

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  • Abeliansky, Ana Lucia & Strulik, Holger, 2017. "How we fall apart: Similarities of human aging in 10 European countries," University of Göttingen Working Papers in Economics 301, University of Goettingen, Department of Economics.
    • Handle: RePEc:zbw:cegedp:301
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    health; aging; health deficit index; Europe; gender differences; compensation law; human life span;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • I10 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - General
    • I19 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - Other

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