Results of the 2007-08 National Health Survey (NHS) showed that the majority of Australians consider themselves to be in very good or excellent health.

Over half of people aged 15 years and over (56%) considered their overall health to be very good or excellent, and 29% stated that their health was good. In contrast, 15% of people aged 15 years or more said their health was fair/poor.

These rates are similar to 2004-05 at 56%, 28% and 16% respectively.

The proportion of people reporting fair or poor health increased with age, from 7% of those aged 15-24 years to 32% of those aged 65 years and over.

Although most people reported they were in good health or better, 77% of the total population reported that they had one or more current long term medical conditions.

The most commonly reported long term conditions were problems with eyesight, 52% of the population, including long and short sightedness (26% and 23% respectively), arthritis (15%), asthma (10%), hayfever and allergic rhinitis (15%) and hypertensive disease (9%). Other commonly reported conditions were, back and disc disorders (14%) and deafness (10%).

Children and young adults

The most commonly reported conditions among children and young adults were respiratory conditions (17% of children under 15 years and 28% of persons aged 15-24 years), with asthma being the most prevalent for children aged under 15 (10%) and hayfever and allergic rhinitis for those aged 15-24 (17%).

Older people

While respiratory conditions were also common among people aged 65 years and over (29%), other conditions were more prevalent in this age group. Sight conditions, arthritis, hypertension and hearing loss were the most common long term conditions among those aged 65 years and over.

Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics