Associations between socioeconomic status and adverse childhood experiences with multidimensional healthy aging:...

By 2050, the global population aged 65 years and older is projected to double, reaching 1.5 billion, with the most rapid growth occurring in Latin America and the Caribbean. In Brazil, this demographic shift is advancing quickly within a context marked by profound social inequalities and insufficient preparation to address the challenges of an aging society. For this reason, this study aimed to estimate the prevalence of healthy aging in a representative sample of the Brazilian population and explore the role of socioeconomic conditions and adverse childhood experiences.

We analyzed data from 9,908 participants aged 50 and older from the 2019-2021 follow-up of the Brazilian Longitudinal Study of Aging (ELSI-Brazil). Participants were classified as healthy and less-healthy aging based on the World Health Organization's multidimensional definition of healthy aging. Logistic regression models were fitted to estimate the association of sociodemographic characteristics and adverse childhood experiences with the likelihood of healthy aging.

Only 19.69% of the sample experienced healthy aging according to the employed criteria. Women, older individuals, those self-identifying as mixed race (compared to those self-identifying as White), participants with no schooling or fewer than four years of education, and widowed individuals were more likely to experience less-healthy aging. In multivariable logistic regression analyses, men, younger respondents, individuals with five or more years of education, and those receiving two or more minimum wages were less likely to experience less-healthy aging, as well as, regarding childhood experiences, participants reporting poor health and experiencing hunger during childhood.

The findings suggest that not only socioeconomic factors but also childhood experiences contribute to disparities in healthy aging in Brazil. These results underscore the importance of implementing early-life health and nutrition programs and improving access to education and economic resources throughout the life course to support healthier aging for future generations.