Women's Health USA 2006

Health Status > Health Indicators

Activity Limitations and Disabilities

Although there are many different ways to define a disability, one common guideline is whether a person is able to perform common activities-such as walking up stairs, standing or sitting for several hours at a time, grasping small objects, or carrying items such as groceries-without assistance. In 2004, just over 14 percent of the U.S. population reported having at least one condition that limited their ability to perform one or more of these common activities. Women were more likely to report being limited in their activities than men (15.4 versus 12.8 percent).

Conditions that cause activity limitations among women vary by race and ethnicity. Activity limitations caused by arthritis, for instance, are most common among non-Hispanic Black women (31.2 percent) and least common among non-Hispanic White women (27.3 percent); conversely, limitations caused by back or neck problems are most common among non-Hispanic White women (21.4 percent) and least common among non-Hispanic Black women (12.8 percent). Activity limitations due to hypertension are also most common among non-Hispanic Black women (20.1 percent), and limitations due to diabetes are most common among Hispanic women (18.4 percent).

Back and neck problems are a common cause of activity limitation: in 2004, almost 21 percent of the population reported being limited in one or more activities by a back or neck problem. Among both males and females, activity limitations caused by back or neck problems are most common among people aged 45 to 64 years (reported by 27.5 percent of men and 25.6 percent of women). Thereafter, limitations due to back or neck problems declined with age.

Visual and hearing impairment are not among the most common causes of activity limitations. Visual impairment affects a small proportion of the population, while hearing impairment, although more prevalent, does not generally affect a person’s ability to do common physical tasks, such as walk or climb stairs. However, such sensory impairments are widely recognized in broader definitions of disability. There are noticeable gender differences in the occurrence of visual and hearing impairment: women are more likely than men to have a visual impairment (7.4 versus 4.5 percent), while men are more likely than women to have a hearing impairment (16.5 versus 10.1 percent). Just over 3 percent of both men and women experience both visual and hearing impairments. In this case, a visual impairment is defined as having trouble seeing even when wearing corrective lenses and/or being blind or unable to see at all, while a hearing impairment is defined as having any trouble hearing without a hearing aid.

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Women's Health USA 2006 is not copyrighted. Readers are free to duplicate and use all or part of the information contained on this page. Suggested Citation: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Health Resources and Services Administration, Women's Health USA 2006. Rockville, Maryland: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2006.