Aging well vs. middle-aged
What Age Truly Defines ‘Middle Age?’
What age exactly is middle-aged anyway?
“If I am middle-aged, I would have to live to be ___ years old.”
We’ve all seen or heard these statements. After age fifty, the numerical object of the verb “to be” gets ridiculous.
Except for the centenarian outliers, which I hope to be someday. Someday, though, is sooner than I like to think about. If it is for you as well, what age is middle-aged?
The number varies depending on who you ask.
American millennials usually define old as starting at age fifty-nine. Gen Xers say old age begins at sixty-five, while Baby Boomers and the Silent Generation agree that you’re not really old until you hit age seventy-five.
As you see, it depends on who you ask, and also what age someone is when you ask.
“2,000 people surveyed by Benenden, a health-care and insurance firm, also made clear that middle age was no longer something for 30- or 40-year-olds to worry about. The life change, they said, began at 53. In fact, nearly half of the older-than-50s who were surveyed said they personally had not experienced “middle age” yet.”
