Entering the not-so-golden years
Last Updated Aug 2007
If you read all the magazines directed to the elderly or watch enough TV
commercials, you would think that people reaching age 65 are entering the prime of
their lives. After all, isn't 60 the new 40? Unfortunately the facts don't square
with marketing hype. The Washington Post recently reported that the reality is
that aging baby boomers are at greater risk than their parents. Whether it's from
less physical activity, greater obesity, more stress, less social support, etc.,
the "golden years" may not be as wonderful as we are led to believe. In fact,
tracking studies have indicated adults born between 1948 and 1953 report poorer
health than groups born in the late 1930s or early 1940s. As the lead researcher
said, "It's not what I expected." This is confirmed by a study last year that at
every socio-economic level, the British are healthier than Americans, and no one
has ever accused the British of being a prime example of good health. The biggest
concern may be the increase in type 2 diabetes. Although not everyone who is
overweight is going to develop diabetes, the data show that there is a
correlation. Unfortunately, there is an even better correlation with age and
diabetes. This is why HMOs that focus on treating Medicare patients report more
than 33 percent of their patients older than age 65 have type 2 diabetes. As the
baby boomers begin to swell the ranks of Medicare, the levels of type 2 diabetes
will dramatically increase. The end result will be a dramatic increase in
government-supported Medicare spending that will mean major cuts in all other
discretionary spending, such as medical research, education, infrastructure repair,
etc. Can this be averted? Only if Americans begin to take responsibility for
their health future, and that begins with the diet. Unfortunately, time is running
out.