We don’t care about ageing. Do you?
Some may ignore the enviable signs of ageing, such as grey hairs, wrinkled skin and creaky bones, but a recent survey has shown more than 70% of Europeans acknowledge the country’s population is getting older – and they don’t seem to care one bit! While more than half are aware of the rapidly ageing population, only 42% remain concerned.
Some may ignore the enviable signs of ageing, such as grey hairs, wrinkled skin and creaky bones, but a recent survey has shown more than 70% of Europeans acknowledge the country’s population is getting older – and they don’t seem to care one bit!
While more than half are aware of the rapidly ageing population, only 42% remain concerned about the issue, according to the Eurobarometer survey released last Friday (13 January 2012).
The survey also finds more than 60% of respondents believe Europeans should be allowed to continue working after retirement age, while about 53% reject the idea of a compulsory retirement age.
Definitions of young and old also differ between Europeans, with those in Malta, Portugal and Sweden believing people younger than 37 years of age to be young, whereas those in Cyprus and Greece consider people aged up to 50 years young.
However, the survey shows, on average, Europeans believe people begin hitting old age just before their 64th birthday and are no longer considered young from the age of 42 years.
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