Babyboomers.com

What is the expression? Forty is the new thirty? Alternatively, fifty is the new forty? Granted, most fifty-year-old women do not look like their mothers or grandmothers did at the same age. That is courtesy of cosmetics, access to hairdressers and hair colorists, better clothing choices and Sshhh, Botox and plastic surgery, but the truth is that today’s Baby Boomers, those born between 1946 and 1964 – with the eldest turning 65 in 2011 – are not as robust and healthy as their parents were at the same age.

These ladies (and gents) may look better on the surface and perhaps appear younger than previous generations at the same age, but they are aging physiologically faster than their parents did, according to Cnn.com. Physiologically means the function of an organism rather than its structure or shape. In this case, the organism is the body of Baby Boomers.

How can that be?

One detriment to the health of Baby Boomers is that they grew up on processed foods, which their parents and grandparents didn’t. Processed food isn’t as good for the body as the unprocessed foods their parents ate. Furthermore, Baby Boomers have generally had easy access to food and as a result eat too much. The result is that they are heavier than their predecessors were at the same age. When a person is overweight or actually obese, this leads to a host of health problems.

An obese Baby Boomer is far more likely to have high blood pressure, diabetes, and heart disease. Boomers are already exhibiting signs of chronic disease in their fifties and sixties whereas the same diseases didn’t strike their parents or grandparents until their seventies or eighties.

Baby Boomers haven’t been as physical as their parents were throughout their lives because of growing up in an automobile-centric world. Whereas their parents walked to school or to work or did physically demanding farm work, Baby Boomers ride everywhere and often sit at a desk in front of a computer. The lack of physicality in the life of a Baby Boomer puts him at risk for health problems.

Baby Boomers are also far more likely than previous generations to take medication. According to AARP, four prescription drugs are taken each day by the average 50-year-old man whereas Grandpa never took anything stronger than an aspirin or Vic’s vapor rub and he lived until he was 92.

Another factor that is taking its toll on the health of Baby Boomers is stress. Many Boomers are in the Sandwich Generation, which means they are taking care of an elderly parent or parents – because people are now living longer than previous generations – while still riding herd on children, which they had later in life than did their parents. This equals stress; lots of it.

Baby Boomers have also been exposed to environmental pollutants their entire life unlike their parents, and this impacts one’s health.

Economic hardships placed on the Baby Boomers also exact a price on the mental and physical health of individuals. Whereas, the Boomers’ parents may have had pensions to carry them through the last years of their lives and retired early in their sixties, Boomers don’t have the same financial perks and security and keep on working long after their parents did. The only medical insurance that some Boomers have is Medicare, which they can’t get until they turn 65.

And sad to say, Boomers haven’t been as proficient at saving money as their predecessors.

All of these factors combined are aging Baby Boomers faster than they should be. Granted, sixty-year old men and women may appear better preserved on the outside because of their access to all the beauty and cosmetic smoke and mirrors that are available to them. Inside, they are lagging behind the health that their parents enjoyed at the same age.

What to do?

Exercise is a key factor in staying healthy longer. It keeps the brain oxygenated and functioning, which protects against the onset of dementia, and exercise also keeps the pounds off. Stay social. Those that are socially active are less likely to get Alzheimer’s disease. Eat right. Watch the booze. Kick the cigarettes. Learn to cope with stress better. Consider joining a yoga class. Learn how to meditate. Don’t automatically scoff at these ideas because consciously taking charge of your stress and how you react to it makes a huge difference in your health. Discuss your medications with your doctor. Maybe you don’t need all of them.

It is imperative that you advocate for yourself and your health.

By NABB Member/Contributor Cindi Pearce