Over 50s feel ten years younger

It seems that 50 is now the new 40 as a new study of 10,000 UK adults commissioned by the Post Office as part of an Alternative Census has revealed that 25 per cent of over 50 year olds feel at least five to ten years younger than they actually are.

What’s more, it’s women that feel the youngest with 22 per cent of women over 50 feeling ten to fifteen years younger, compared to 17 per cent of men. It seems the older we get doesn’t affect how young we feel with 18 per cent of 80 year olds feeling fifteen to twenty years younger.

The most influential factors in making people feel more youthful include leisure interests and hobbies (33 per cent), leading a healthy lifestyle (24 per cent) and maintaining an active social life (nine per cent). Family also has a key role to play as 22 per cent of people said that their children and grandchildren helped to keep them feeling younger.

With many people over 50 seeing their adult children fly the nest, having the freedom to do what they like (23 per cent) ranks the highest in the best aspect of getting older. We also embrace caring less about what people think (15 per cent), having the opportunity to spend more time with family (ten per cent) and feel more comfortable and content (nine per cent).

However, it seems that men and women enjoy differing aspects of growing old with more women claiming that they care less about what people think (18 per cent) compared to just 10 per cent of men and enjoying time with family (12 per cent) compared to just seven per cent of men.

Youthful 50+ UK Celebrities:

Celebrity: Age:
Helen Mirren 65
Joanna Lumley 64
Twiggy 61
Judi Dench 75
Felicity Kendal 64
Shirley Bassey 73
Hugh Grant 50
Colin Firth 50
Rod Stewart 66
Bruce Forsyth 82
Sean Connery 80
Martin Shaw 65

Stewart Fox-Mills, Head of the Post Office Customer Insight Team said: "It seems that the older we get, the more comfortable and content we feel about ourselves and spending time with loved ones is a key factor in keeping people youthful in later life. Today, turning 50 is an opportunity to have some ‘me’ time and rediscover yourself; it can also be a time to do those things that you’ve put off in the past due to other priorities."

The Post Office ‘Alternative Census’ was commissioned to coincide with a new advertising campaign that focuses on the fact that there is more that unites us than divides us as a nation. Cementing its position firmly in the heart of the community, the campaign builds on the Post Office’s heritage and reflects work carried out in the 1920s by the General Post Office when it commissioned a series of films into UK life.

To hear about the range of services on offer from your local Post Office pop into your nearest branch or visit postoffice.co.uk.