Items to cheer up retirees

OLD AGE BEGINS AT 80
As population ages, the number at which we become old gets a little higher

"Old age," quips Betsy Gelb, professor of marketing and entrepreneurship at the University of Houston's Bauer College of Business, "now starts at 80 plus.

The average life expectancy in the United States in 1900 was 47 years. In 1900, to be old was to be 50. Life expectancy today is 77.9 years.

The number of people 65 and older is projected to more than double between 2000 and 2030, from 35 million to 71 million, according to the U.S. Census Bureau
[Culled from a story by Jeannie Kever in the Houston Chronicle]

GROWING NUMBERS
2000
Under 18: 72 million, 26 percent
65 and older: 35 million, 12 percent

2010 (est.)
Under 18: 74 million, 24 percent
65 and older: 40 million, 13 percent

2030 (est.)
Under 18: 86 million, 24 percent
65 and older: 71 million, 20 percent
[Source: U.S. Census Bureau]

WOMEN 45 AND OLDER
65 percent say they are happier now than ever before.
92 percent say they have friends and family to rely upon.
15 percent never pay off their credit cards in full.
83 percent report a greater sense of freedom to be themselves.
19 percent worry about being alone as they grow old.
82 percent say they exercise at least 30 minutes per week.
[Source: AARP]