Why do younger people treat people over 60 like they are “old aged”?

Remember when you were 24 …?  How old did you think people had to be to be declared old?  We asked this question on our site last week and were astounded with the results.

We asked everyone here at Starts at 60 how old they think “old age” is.  And people here responded with a voice that was almost in unison.  Almost all of you in our community do not consider themselves to be “old aged” with 66% of people saying that old aged only kicked in over the age of 75 and more than 50% of these saying over 80 was their view.

Out of over 1000 respondents, 91% of which were aged under 75, so many of you said in many many comments on our site that you “don’t feel old at all”, and that “age is a state of mind”.  “I’m not old”, said one person, “I’ve just been young for a long time”.

Of the people who have given up work in our community, the most of you have done so between the ages of 60 and 65( 33%), with the second most common age for retirement being 65-70 (26%).  And 18% giving up work between 55-60.

It contrasts horrifically with a broad study done in the UK which concluded that “old aged” was perceived by a sample of people over 16 to be 58 years old.

Now I don’t know about you, but 58 is not that old to me.    The 58 year olds I know are more free, invigorated and opportunistic with their lives than most of the people I know who are battling mortgages, school fees and work obligations through their twenties, thirties and forties.

Do you feel that people treat you as older than you really are? Do you think there is a way to help the problem? Share your thoughts in the comments below…