Baby boomers say their biggest health fear is cancer. Given their waistlines, heart disease and diabetes should be atop that list, too. Boomers are more obese than other generations, a new poll finds, setting them up for unhealthy senior years. And for all the talk of “60 is the new 50” and active aging, even those who aren’t obese need to do more to stay fit, according to the Associated Press-LifeGoesStrong.com poll.
Most baby boomers say they get some aerobic exercise, the kind that revs up your heart rate, at least once a week. But adults are generally supposed to get 2˝ hours a week of moderate-intensity aerobic activity: things like a brisk walk, a dance class, pushing a lawn mower. Only about a quarter of boomers polled report working up a sweat four or five times a week, what the average person needs to reach that goal.
Based on calculation of body mass index from self-reported height and weight, roughly a third of the baby boomers polled are obese, compared with about a quarter of both older and younger respondents. Only half of the obese boomers say they are regularly exercising. An additional 36% of boomers are overweight, though not obese. The nation has been bracing for a surge in Medicare costs as the 77 million baby boomers, the postwar generation born from 1946 to 1964, begin turning 65. Obesity—with its extra risk of heart disease, diabetes, high blood pressure and arthritis—will further fuel those bills.
