The Age When People Really Start Feeling Old May Be Younger Than You Think

The question of old age may have finally been answered. A new survey suggests there really is a specific age when people say they start feeling old and it may be younger than you think.

The survey done by cloudBuy and printed in The Telegraph, suggests people start worrying about old age around 50-years-old. In fact, 80 percent of the respondents reported they didn't really start worrying about their age until they hit 50.

The article lists the top 20 worries which reflect three key areas that make people feel old. Those key areas include their health, their looks and end of life.

As one of those 50 somethings, I have to agree with the findings. For many, it's the age when your doctor wants to screen you for colon cancer. They also insist on an annual physical, EKG and start recommending immunizations for all kinds of things.

As for looks, the further past 50 you get, the harder it is to keep the middle age spread from doing just that. If you still have hair after 50, it grays and suddenly hair starts growing in places you never had it before, like your ears, for instance. It's also the age when you start noticing every day aches and pains are just that.

At 50, you start getting membership applications for AARP. You also realize saving for retirement should have started over 20 years ago. And why is it your children keep asking you if you have a will and tell you they're preparing to ship you off to Shady Pines Retirement Home?

Then again, my grandmother just celebrated her 101st birthday. So, in the famous words of Mad Magazine's Alfred E. Neuman, "What, me worry?" If you know who Alfred is, you really are old.

[The Telegraph]