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What worries them most is their children and grandchildren -- followed by their health, getting older and needing care, income or money matters, getting good health care and their ability to pay for prescription drugs.

The findings, to be made public today, are from the 2001 Survey of Older Minnesotans, the fourth such survey since 1971 initiated by the Minnesota Board on Aging.

In many ways, those findings are not surprising, said Hal Freshley, senior researcher at the Board on Aging. But for this survey of 2,253 older Minnesotans, the questions were asked for the first time of people beginning at age 55 instead of 60. Results also were broken out for people 85 and older.

"What we found is that younger seniors may have better health and financial resources than the oldest old," he said, "but they're also a lot more worried."

For instance, 61 percent of the age 55-59 group worry some or a lot about their children or grandchildren, a feeling held by only 33 percent of those 85 and older. And 47 percent of the younger group worry about their health, compared to just 25 percent of far sicker and more frail older Minnesotans.

"Maybe by the time you're 85 you've pretty well figured things out and you just don't worry as much," Freshley suggested. "Or maybe, as some research suggests, people who don't worry much live longer.

"Most of the worriers may be dead by age 85."

Focus for research

The $200,000 survey will be used by Freshley and other researchers as the basis for policy papers examining such issues as the state's prescription-drug program, the wealth of older Minnesotans, caregiving problems and snowbirds.

"For instance, one of the things we know is that far more eligible seniors in smaller towns and counties tend to use state programs like the prescription-drug program than seniors in bigger population areas," Freshley said. "Is that because people in small towns look out for each other better?"

The issue of snowbirds is intriguing, he said, because 10 percent of older Minnesotans head south for the winter, including 14 percent of those ages 65-74.

"In some communities, that really puts a dent in things when a lot of movers and shakers are gone for three or four months," he said.

Unlike previous years, the survey results will be made public on the Board on Aging's Web site and not printed. Summaries of research reports likely will be printed, Freshley said.

"We decided to put that money into research instead of paper," he said. "In the past, most people have wanted a few facts from the report instead of the report itself." Made public today are simply the data, with little analysis.

The survey was conducted by the University of Minnesota's Center for Survey Research.

One of the surprises in the survey, said Freshley, is that nearly 80 percent of older Minnesotans take prescription drugs daily.

"We're still looking at that -- we have data not released yet on those who take more than one drug and we want to find out more about their ability to pay for drugs," he said.

Even among younger seniors ages 55-59, 68 percent use daily prescriptions, the survey indicated. Among the oldest group, the figure is 84 percent.

Better health

Good or excellent health was reported by 78 percent of people age 55 and older -- ranging from 83 percent of those ages 55-59, to 64 percent of those 85 and older.

That question was not asked in the 1995 survey, but questions about disabilities were asked in both. The oldest are clearly more frail, though fewer reported problems than in the previous survey.

Overall, 26 percent reported difficulty doing heavy housework such as scrubbing floors and mowing grass, compared with 31 percent in 1995. But among the oldest Minnesotans, 59 percent say those are difficult tasks for them.

In that oldest group, 15 percent also say they have difficulty shopping for groceries, and 11 percent say they have trouble moving from a bed to a chair, getting dressed and getting out of the house.

The oldest also have far less income than do younger seniors.

Slightly more than half of older Minnesotans take part in vigorous activities -- 20 or 30 minutes two or three times a week -- unchanged from 1995. About 30 percent of those 85 and older participate, compared to 62 percent of the youngest seniors. The percent who exercise rises with income and education.

Incomes rise

About 10 percent of seniors living alone have incomes below the poverty line, compared with 5 percent of those living with a spouse.

In each age category, the poverty level fell, but the biggest drop was people ages 65 to 74 living alone, which dropped from 16 percent to 6 percent. For married people of that age, the rate dropped from 7 percent to 1.5 percent.

That may reflect the fact that more in that age group reported pensions as their main source of income, up from 23 percent to 33 percent. Several years of robust economy might also have improved retiree investments and savings last year.

But it appears not to be related to working: the percentage of workers in that age group dropped from 23 percent in 1995 to 19 percent last year.

Overall median per capita income was up sharply from 1995 -- up 29 percent after inflation to $18,000 for those ages 65-74, and was up in all age groups. More precise data on income among older people will be available later this year with the release of additional census data.

"One huge value of the survey is it helps dispel some of the myths about aging," Freshley said. "You hear that older people are sick, or they have tons of money, or they need help and have to go to the nursing home.

"In some ways, the survey helps us see that older Minnesotans are like any other large group -- people who live in very diverse situations."

To see data from the 2001 Survey of Older Minnesotans, go to http://www.mnaging.org

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