Baby Boomers sicker and frailer than previous generations

theworriedwell

Well as a boomer I've outlived my grandmother and her daughters, how? Well I just didn't inherit the BRCA1 gene that killed them. Clever me hey.

So many generalisations on here, I nearly choked at the one about we all grew out own fruit and veg. I was born in my gran's house, six back to back houses sharing one yard which included two toilets one for the front houses and one for the back houses and of course the wash house which the woman worked out some sort of rota for who used it when. The idea that there was anywhere to grow their own fruit and veg is just hilarious and the idea any of them had the time or energy is also so funny except it is so tragic. Those women spent all their time and energy fighting vermin and poverty and their husbands were working long hours in conditions that would be unbelievable now. So yes the ones who survived to 60 were strong, the weak were long dead.

My gran had 7 babies and 3 of them grew up, again the strong survived. I suppose Sparta had the right idea after all.

Yes , so many generalisations on this post . My paternal grandparents and my dad lived in a council flat in south london , with just a small balcony , so not able to grow stuff . My grandad was a docker and worked long hours at the London docks . My grandmother was a seamstress. Their flat was in a quad with washing lines in the square below . So she had to go up and down four flights of stairs to dry her washing . No tumble dryers and no lifts . Shopping and babies also had to be lugged up and the stairs , which were spotless because the women scrubbed the stairs and the area outside their front doors. So neither had any spare time. My grandad died aged 46 from respiratory problems linked to dust from loading coal or grain onto the ships .
My in-laws also lived in a council flat , again didn’t grow anything . My mil fried most things in loads of fat , she never grilled anything, or she boiled veg with lots of salt . They both took 3 teaspoons of sugar in their tea . Puddings came in a tin, cakes from mr Kipling and custard from a packet. My mil rarely cooked from scratch. She worked and didn’t have the time . She died aged 85 , fil aged 92

Witzend

My poor MiL always did the right things, not overweight, never smoked, hardly drank, made her own stoneground whole meal bread for years, walked or cycled just about everywhere - and still died of cancer at only 68. Her younger brother died of cancer a year or two previously, and her own mother died of cancer in her late 50s.

OTOH her elder brother, who smoked like a chimney and drank like a fish, went on into his late 80s - no cancer.

I’m sure a lot of it’s down to the luck of the draw re genes.

Absolutely. When I saw the Professor of Genetics to get my results I felt like I'd won the lottery, in the main it wasn't about me it was my DD and DGDs. I hadn't passed on a bad ticket in the genetics lottery.

When my gran and the first of her daughters died BRCA1 hadn't been discovered and I'm sure that in future other genes are going to be discovered so that people like my cousins with the gene will at least be carefully monitored and offered surgical options that could save lives.

My poor MiL always did the right things, not overweight, never smoked, hardly drank, made her own stoneground whole meal bread for years, walked or cycled just about everywhere - and still died of cancer at only 68. Her younger brother died of cancer a year or two previously, and her own mother died of cancer in her late 50s.

OTOH her elder brother, who smoked like a chimney and drank like a fish, went on into his late 80s - no cancer.

I’m sure a lot of it’s down to the luck of the draw re genes.

Well as a boomer I've outlived my grandmother and her daughters, how? Well I just didn't inherit the BRCA1 gene that killed them. Clever me hey.

So many generalisations on here, I nearly choked at the one about we all grew out own fruit and veg. I was born in my gran's house, six back to back houses sharing one yard which included two toilets one for the front houses and one for the back houses and of course the wash house which the woman worked out some sort of rota for who used it when. The idea that there was anywhere to grow their own fruit and veg is just hilarious and the idea any of them had the time or energy is also so funny except it is so tragic. Those women spent all their time and energy fighting vermin and poverty and their husbands were working long hours in conditions that would be unbelievable now. So yes the ones who survived to 60 were strong, the weak were long dead.

My gran had 7 babies and 3 of them grew up, again the strong survived. I suppose Sparta had the right idea after all.

SueDonim

Maggieanne

Do you remember when we thought Hattie Jaques was fat, that's what we called it then, but having seen her in films she was nowhere near the size of a lot of people that we see nowadays, we just see overweight as normal.

I was thinking along those lines recently, too. I read something about the late singer Meat Loaf and I remembered how his USP in his early days was his massive size, when rock stars of the 70’s were generally svelte or even scrawny eg Mick Jagger/Freddie Mercury.

Nowadays, we see people the size of Meat Loaf every time we go out, many of them really quite young, and his size would not be at all remarkable. Ironically, by the time he died, he had slimmed down considerably from his weightiest days.

It worries me when I see so many youngsters, around 5 - 11 or so who are overweight. What will they be like when they are older? Surely it can’t be good for them and I can’t think what the parents are thinking letting their children risk their health.

Growing up everything was cooked from fresh, no ready-made meals. Fish and chips were the only takeaway foods, Saturday night, and a visit to the Wimpy for a birthday treat. Walking to school and playing outside almost daily. To be honest it was very rare I ever saw an overweight person whereas nowadays sadly its commonplace and many being young people.

We only had the wimpy bar, brown derby was a rare treat, McDonald’s wasn’t about back then. The Only ready meal I can think of, was those vista chowmein meals with the crispy noodles. We only had home cooked meals ever, we couldn’t afford to eat out, only for birthdays did we eat out.

NannyJan53

Mum is almost 95, and always puts her longevity down to growing up in the 30's and 40's where there were no junk foods, no sweets or biscuits much during the War, and no supermarkets to tempt you to buy more than you need.

Also she said she walked everywhere rarely even took a bus.

I am sure that’s why. Walking is so important too, but most of us (myself included) are our own worst enemies because we drive a mile rather than walk. Junk food is to blame too, or rather, our greed for it.

I’m 73 my husband is 76. We are extremely active . Play 18 holes of golf twice a week ( walking a very hilly course) we swim a lot in the summer. Eat very healthy food and drink in moderation. Neither of us smoke. Junk food has never appealed to either of us. We retired to live on the Mediterranean island of Cyprus which suits us perfectly. Sunshine, stress free and wonderful food.

Not sure if I believe this report. My parents were extremely fit, walked everywhere, cooked from scratch, grew their own veg and had fruit trees as well and didn’t drink alcohol or smoke. Dad died in his 60s, Mum in her early 70s. It’s the luck of the draw. I’m a polio’ survivor but have lived beyond what they did even though I have restricted mobility and some breathing problems. I don’t feel old or knackered even though I worked beyond my retirement age. I can’t remember the last time I had a cold and don’t take any of the drugs that a lot of over 50s take because my BP, sugar levels , thyroid etc. tests always come back “bob on”.

It is depressing to see so many young people who are seriously overweight, with children who are following the same route. You can regularly see the worst kind of unhealthy food in shopping baskets. I really don't know the answer to this - it has been discussed so many times on GN, but surely basic healthy cooking skills should be instilled from an early age at both home and school. Jamie Oliver had an uphill struggle trying to promote healthy school food - parents were buying fish and chips and handing it through the school railings.

The two big culprits are capitalism and the technological revolution - capitalism because this motivated the development of food, drink and tobacco products (fizzy drinks, fast food) after WWII leading to a huge rise in mental health problems in American children/youth especially (and the subsequent opportunities for Ritalin seized by big pharma), and the technological revolution which enabled people to buy whatever they want by perusing a screen and clicking a button.

A lot of the cause was the start of the Fast Food chains. I can remember watching kids, the same age as my kids only interested in eating chips.
While during the wart there was food rationing and people were advised to grow their own vegetables

That's right @lamusica and our genes are in fact capable of being switched on or off by environmental influences.

As well as everything mentioned on here wrt lifestyle, ultra processed food, high sugar and fat in almost everything on the supermarket shelf etc, I believe our immune systems are being weakened drastically by indoor and outdoor pollution. The polluted air we breathe, the cocktail of pesticides on our food. Micro plastics now in everything including our vital organs, Sewage in our streams and rivers. We are literally, as a human race, poisoning ourselves to death. It’s all man-made and absolutely crazy. Most of the changes went in the way of ‘progress’ but if you look more carefully it’s more like the greed of the capitalist society.

Hattie...
(Short for Hatfield)

Hatfield Jacques was hefty, as was Meatloaf.
I never considered them to be lightweights.

Maggieanne

Do you remember when we thought Hattie Jaques was fat, that's what we called it then, but having seen her in films she was nowhere near the size of a lot of people that we see nowadays, we just see overweight as normal.

I was thinking along those lines recently, too. I read something about the late singer Meat Loaf and I remembered how his USP in his early days was his massive size, when rock stars of the 70’s were generally svelte or even scrawny eg Mick Jagger/Freddie Mercury.

Nowadays, we see people the size of Meat Loaf every time we go out, many of them really quite young, and his size would not be at all remarkable. Ironically, by the time he died, he had slimmed down considerably from his weightiest days.

I can guess how this thread will go, I think.

For the study, when we were around 45 years old, we had our DNA extracted so scientists could measure our stress hormones. The findings were that our cortisol levels were higher than in the previous generation, and as we know, stress can be responsible for illnesses and depression. Babyboomers may have had cushier lives in some respects, but the effects of late 20th century stresses are not to be underestimated. Maybe this accounts for more health problems than previously.

Interestingly, however, at 55 years old, 45% of us were classed as being in excellent or very good health, and a further 35% in good health.

I think genes play a part in longevity. A great grandfather lived to 95 and others in my family tree lived to late 80s.and early 90s

We are a lot bigger than previous generations. I have 3 wedding dresses in store but they will not even now, fit Great GDs aged 15 & 11. I think they are on their way to a museum.

It's interesting that the huge decrease in smoking hasn't resulted in a decrease in these chronic conditions, in fact seems to have been more than offset by unhealthy diet. We probably drink more alcohol now, & less at the pub in a social environment. When I look back at old photos, there are aunties that I remember as being chubby or fat who look quite svelte in the photos. And dress sizes, I'm a 10 with ease but I couldn't fit a vintage size 10 from the 70's boutiques - even a 12 would be tight.So are fashion brands right to include obese models in their marketing? Or is it just encouraging us to think of being overweight as normal?

I know that definitely applies to me, it seems that when I hit 50 everything started to go downhill physically.
When my grandmother was 80 she would run albeit slowly with my children
I haven’t been able to do that for a long time and I’m in my 60s
I think we are spoiled in many ways,I was thinking about this the other day when my dishes were being washed in the dishwasher, washing going around in the machine and clothes being dried in the tumble dryer and a meal cooking in the slow cooker all whilst I sat there reading a book waiting for my shopping to be delivered
All of these things people used to do physically including me when I was young, we used up so many calories and unwillingly exercised, along with all the luxury items we have now, has come laziness not to mention driving our grandchildren to school instead of walking

Do you remember when we thought Hattie Jaques was fat, that's what we called it then, but having seen her in films she was nowhere near the size of a lot of people that we see nowadays, we just see overweight as normal.

ReadyMeals

We didn't live healthily as teens either. All night parties and drugs etc. Risky sex. Smoking. And I think we were the first generation whose parents did everything for us. I also remember my mother was so relieved to be out of wartime rationing that she kept a whole cupboard bursting with chocolate bars. We were the peak generation for childhood and teenage degenerate living, before a generation later some health messages started filtering through.

Not all our social set didn't we were saints compared with accepted behavior today