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70 is the new 60 seniors are today as fit as never before
At the finish Dieter Hempel and Hauke Rüther are very close to each other. Hempel needs three hours, 58 minutes and 46 seconds for this year's Berlin Marathon, which he finished in 15.022. Rüther follows just one second and seven places behind. Both almost on a par, and yet there are years between them: while Rüther was born in 1984, Hempel was born in 1940.
70 is the new 60. People are getting fitter in old age. Picture: ArtFamily-fotolia The runner from the Treptower Sportverein in Berlin impressively shows what achievements older people are capable of. He was not only the best in the age group of 75- to 79-year-olds, at his marathon bite even many younger recreational runners teeth. Of course, Hempel's performance requires a lot of training and is by no means a matter of course for people of his age. But it would also be wrong to stamp seniors as frail people. "Age is telling less and less about the abilities of the individual," says Manfred Gogol, medical director of the Clinic for Geriatrics in Coppenbrügge.
Senior health has improved
Because the people in Germany are not only continuously older, they also gain more active and healthy years of life. "Today's 70-year-olds are as healthy as the 60-year-olds were 20 years ago," says Björn Schumacher, aging researcher at the University of Cologne. Better living conditions and medical care mean that even for very elderly people the biological clock is ticking differently today than in the past, as the Heidelberg Centenarian Study shows. According to them, today's 100-year-olds are as mentally and physically fit as the 90-year-olds ten years ago.
And the better fitness also opens up more opportunities to make the evening of life. In any case, the picture of the couch potato no longer fits the reality of today's seniors. They value self-determination and individuality and want to enjoy retirement to the full: they travel a lot, do sports, study, volunteer and maintain their friendships. There have never been so many seniors in gyms as they are today, and so many older people have never taken courses in adult education centers. And the retirees of tomorrow will be even more active, because the coming years live healthier than those born before them the same age.
Age picture changes positively
With the perspectives in mind, old age loses its terror. This is confirmed by the results of the German Aging Survey (DEAS) - a long-term survey dealing with the life situation of people in the second half of life. Accordingly, the picture of aging has changed positively between 1996 and 2008. Retired people increasingly see the opportunity for personal development and thus less the disadvantages such as physical limitations. The perception of the retirees themselves, who experience the possibilities of the third phase of life themselves, has improved the most.
For this reason, scientists come to a clear conclusion: the more retirees participate in social and cultural life and engage in active activities, the more positive this will have on their picture of age. But that's not all: seniors who realize themselves, thus also operate the best prevention. "We know today that social inclusion is the most important factor in long life and mental health," says Gogol.
And when the body plays along, even at a high age maximum performance is possible. This is also proven by Poul Jensen. The Dane also ran the Berlin Marathon this year - in the age group Ü80. And in the end he was even about 20 seconds faster than Hempel.
"Living 7 years longer" is an initiative of the German insurers. The initiative therefore wants to engage in a social dialogue on how we can make the most of the years we have gained. In this context, the Prognos study "Rentenperspektiven 2040" should also be made available to a broader public. Further information: www.7jahrelanger.de