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Humphrey Lyttelton dies at 86, still young at heart
In a high profile launch of a new organisation, “The Life Trust Foundation”, Lord Hunt of Wirral described the financial implications of an ageing UK population as a “ticking time bomb of longevity” and the United Nations has described the overall impact as second only to global warming. As a consequence in my prime, as experts in the field, was invited to comment on the subject on BBC Three Counties Radio last week. We also had the opportunity to address a meeting of members the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants who found it a great eye-opening experience, with plenty of food for thought.
But still, in commerce and government alike, the topic is treated as the archetypal “elephant in the room”. Everyone knows it’s there, everyone can see it, but nobody wants to acknowledge it or talk about it or do anything about it. However, time is running out and there are lots of questions to address – not all of them bad. Again, only last week came the announcement of another new marketing agency being established to meet the needs of the over 50 consumer. This brings us to another question, before anyone makes the point. Is there such a thing as an over 50 consumer? Should we feel pleased that people are taking notice of our requirements and our concerns, or do we feel that we are being patronised? Personally, I am totally comfortable identifying clearly what features I am looking for in a product or service, articulating this succinctly and then “putting my money where my mouth is” in a mature, adult fashion.
So what are the facts as far as the emerging demographics are concerned? The following are just some of the statistics we have analysed, all based on data from the Office of National Statistics and the Government Actuary’s Department.
By 2031, less than 25 years away, over one-third of the UK population will be over 55, while 22% will be over 65. There are two major implications of this. Firstly, the working lives of individuals will have to extend beyond 65 to ensure that there are enough in the workforce to meet the nation’s needs. Secondly, the notion that retirement is just a few twilight years after a lifetime of slog is no longer relevant.
Retirement is likely to cover a considerable amount of time and must be paid for. However, those aged from 16 to 64 will not be enough in number to fund the retirement of those of 65 plus. The dependency ratio, which has been falling for a very long time, falls even further. In 1971 there were 4.6 people in the 16 – 64 bracket for every person of 65 plus but this will fall to 2.7 by 2031. It just won’t be possible or acceptable for those working to fully support those in retirement.
We are, therefore, seeing the harmonisation of men/women retirement ages, the gradual increase in all retirement ages, and severe pressure being put on personal and state finances in respect of such things as pensions, health costs and care costs for the elderly.
Looking at life expectancy in more detail, in short people are living ever longer. Taking into account improving mortality rates men of 65 now can expect to live until they are 86 and women to 88. And the trend of greater and greater life expectancy will continue for the foreseeable future. Current 40 year-olds who make it to 65 can expect to live into their nineties or very close to.
Even with increased state retirement ages, it appears that men will have a retirement of about 22 years to look forward to and women will have about 24 years. However, 22 or 24 years is a long time to finance oneself without working, a long time to fill in an interesting, fulfilling and valued way, and a long time to stay physically and mentally healthy. It means people will work for, say, 40 to 50 years and then be without paid employment for 20 to 25 years. In itself this is a lot of years but it is also a large proportion of one’s life.
But length of life is not automatically associated with quality of life and, while life expectancy is increasing, a number of our final years will be in less than perfect health. On average men can expect about 7 of their final years to be associated with a limiting longstanding illness and women about 9 years. There is still a lot to do.
In terms of working longer we are already seeing increased numbers of people working on beyond state retirement age. Over the past two years the general increase in working numbers has been in total about 2%. However, for men over 65 the growth has been 12% and for women over 60 the growth has been nearly 15%. Although these latter figures are still fairly low in absolute terms they are growing rapidly as many people choose or feel the need to continue working longer.
May has got to be the perfect month to get up out of your chair and get going. Whether or not it’s sunny, it’s LIGHT and generally warmer – definitely a great time to do something physical. The link between longevity, good physical and mental health, and exercise is absolutely beyond question. So how come so many of us still seem to do so little about it?
Okay, we know the answer. It can be difficult and time-consuming and if you don’t find an activity you’re passionate about, downright boring. However, last month, a new study published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine claimed that taking regular aerobic exercise could help turn back our biological clocks and delay ageing by up to 12 years.
‘Aerobic’ exercise always sounds particularly scary (redolent of aerobics classes - popular in the eighties and hard work) but actually all it means is a level of exertion ‘enough to raise the heart rate to 120 beats a minute or higher’ – which can result from as little as a brisk walk, swimming, cycling or jogging. The benefits in terms of strengthening the heart and lungs, reducing fatigue and adding to overall quality of life are impressive – you just have to do it.
As another London marathon has recently come and gone we were interested to find out how many in my primers participated in this particularly impressive event and were astounded to find that out of a total of 34,420 people who completed the marathon, 4,817 were over 50 - 160 of whom were over 70! Makes doing anything less seem, quite literally, a stroll in the park.
So next time you’re contemplating whether you can be bothered to leave the car behind and walk, or whether to get someone in to mow the lawn, just remember these figures. There’s obviously no automatic reason why we have to slow down physically over 50, so if you haven’t been as active as you might of late, resolve to make May the month you change your habits. You will reap the benefits in terms of reduced stress, depression and likelihood of developing a range of problems including diabetes, heart disease and muscular and skeletal ailments.
A number of companies are now producing mobile phones which are geared towards “the aged or technophobic” (not my words) and one, which sold 250000 across Europe in the last year, is now launching its second generation version. It doesn’t have loads and loads of fancy features but the ones it does have do seem useful for its intended market – I refuse to use their heading “Mobile for the over 50s set to ignite the silver sector”.
The phone has the following attributes: a super loud hands-free speakerphone, over-sized (how can this be?) display and buttons, flash light, hearing aid compatible, one press “in case of emergency” facility, a standby time of 250 hours. (If you want to continue taking the stones out of horses’ hooves you’ll still need your Swiss army knife.)
We’re not quite so enamoured of the price, £145 for pay-as-you-go. It looks a bit like the phone equivalent of supermarket organic foods.
In my prime welcomes such developments and does not find them in any way demeaning. Nobody is forced to buy one. To be honest, our first stance is always to master the technology, as intended, rather than look for substitutes. However, it is a fact of life that as we get older certain parts of us no longer function as well as they did before. But that should not lead to social or workplace exclusion. It’s all very well casually assuming that people will have to work into their mid-seventies but, unless the environment becomes more age-friendly, it will just not be possible. Employers will continue to find ways to be ageist, citing inability or declining performance, when a serious consideration and re-designing of the tasks or more sensible, more appropriate equipment will be all that is needed.
The problem’s not going to go away.
We’re all very, very sad to see the recent passing of Humphrey Lyttelton, a person with so many talents and endearing qualities. What is so amazing is that many of his finest years, and our fondest memories, occurred only once he had passed 50, 36 years ago. Although already a jazz musician of considerable repute, most of his more than 40 years of hosting Radio 2’s The Best of Jazz took place after many of us would be considering slowing down and retiring. And the crowning glory, 36 years of chairing “I’m Sorry I Haven’t a Clue” since its inception in 1972, was all played out once he was already “in his prime”. What greater advertisement could we come up with for the ideals we are trying to promote than the real, magnificent “Humph”?
1001 little ways to look younger
by Emma Baxter-Wright, published by Carlton Books, 2007.
We like self-help books. They may not necessarily contain much that’s hugely deep and meaningful or even much that’s really new but they’re a great way of reminding yourself of some of the things you can do to change your life and can provide a much-needed tweak to motivation. We particularly like self-help books you can dip into and read quickly (like our own Primetastic!), so when we heard about this book we were keen to find out more.
Regrettably the cover of the book appears to have been designed for a totally different readership than the ageing individuals who one assumes would want to buy it. It has an illustration of a young woman (early 20s) who bears no relation to what an older person’s idea of ‘younger’ – for ourselves – could possibly look like. Although this title appears to be part of a series, and this is the overall series look, it’s still difficult to see why anyone thought this image was a good idea.
The back cover blurb also seems unclear about who the book is written for, referring to anti-ageing remedies, solutions for wrinkles, and improving your mental sharpness but then talking about staying young and beautiful (much as we might wish it, over 50 that just isn’t an option…)
However, if you get past this, the rest of the book is fine. As the title suggests, it contains 1001 short tips to help make the most of what we’ve got and look and feel younger. Tips are divided into sections including skincare, hair, wardrobe, fitness, health and nutrition, smoking, staying slim and mind and body. Whether or not they all work, who knows? But it’s food for thought, and even if we only choose to try out one or two new things, it’s bound to be better than doing nothing at all.
To order this and other similar books click here.