Monday, August 07, 2006
Hearts Flutter for over 50s
Hearts fluttering, spontaneous romance and love at first sight might sound like the pages of Mills and Boon or at least teenage fantasy, but hearts are racing a plenty amongst the over 50s too - according to a study by Saga and the British Heart Foundation.
36% of over 50s consider themselves more spontaneous now than they were in their 20s and 30s and the numbers of over 50s claiming to live life to the full actually increases the further over 50 they get.
This certainly applies to over 50s’ love lives as over one in four proclaim to feel more romantic the older they get and over half believe in love at first sight, 6% more than cynical under 50s.
69% of over 50s consider themselves romantic; a sentiment put into practice when, as part of the study, the majority lovingly picked their husband, wife or partner as a dream date even when they could have picked celebrities such as George Clooney and Jennifer Aniston.
Ideal celebrity dates vary slightly among age groups, younger ladies prefer Johnny Depp (29%) or Robbie Williams (22%) whereas those over 50 would rather romance Sean Connery (20%) or Mel Gibson (16%), only one man featured in the top 3 of both age groups – the ever popular George Clooney.
Kylie Minogue (20%) and Angelina Jolie (19%) are most likely to set young mens’ hearts fluttering, whereas the older romantics opted for Jennifer Aniston (18%), followed closely by Julia Roberts (17%) and proving that a way to a man’s heart truly is through his stomach, 16% chose Nigella Lawson.
These over 50s Casanovas were discovered by Saga and BHF as they investigated what makes hearts flutter, as part of the launch of a new fundraising partnership between Britain’s leading services provider to today’s over 50s and the nation’s heart charity
As part of the partnership Saga will be publicising the work of the BHF to Saga customers and jointly promoting fundraising activities. Saga aims to raise hundreds of thousands of pounds over the course of the partnership.
Professor Andrew Steptoe, BHF Chair of Psychology at University College London said: "There is a serious side to thinking about love and affection as we grow older. Clinical research has shown that people who enjoy high levels of emotional support and who have lots of social connections are at reduced risk for developing coronary heart disease.
"On the other hand, family discord and conflict between partners may raise risk. There are direct links between these emotional states and our biological responses in everyday life. With research funding from the British Heart Foundation, we are trying to understand these processes in detail, so that we can work out exactly how our emotional lives affect the heart.
Andrew Goodsell, Chief Executive, Saga Group said: "It is good to know that today’s over 50s are making the most of love and romance and better still, that this is good for our hearts. We are proud to be working with the British Heart Foundation and I am confident that working together we will raise money and awareness of why the nation’s over 50s should keep fit, healthy and active."
Douglas Rouse, Head of Corporate Partnerships at the British Heart Foundation said: “The money raised through our fundraising partnership with Saga, will help us in our fight against heart disease, which remains the UK’s biggest killer. Through this partnership, we will highlight the importance of maintaining a healthy heart, so romance can continue to blossom for the over 50s.”
More on the heart here
36% of over 50s consider themselves more spontaneous now than they were in their 20s and 30s and the numbers of over 50s claiming to live life to the full actually increases the further over 50 they get.
This certainly applies to over 50s’ love lives as over one in four proclaim to feel more romantic the older they get and over half believe in love at first sight, 6% more than cynical under 50s.
69% of over 50s consider themselves romantic; a sentiment put into practice when, as part of the study, the majority lovingly picked their husband, wife or partner as a dream date even when they could have picked celebrities such as George Clooney and Jennifer Aniston.
Ideal celebrity dates vary slightly among age groups, younger ladies prefer Johnny Depp (29%) or Robbie Williams (22%) whereas those over 50 would rather romance Sean Connery (20%) or Mel Gibson (16%), only one man featured in the top 3 of both age groups – the ever popular George Clooney.
Kylie Minogue (20%) and Angelina Jolie (19%) are most likely to set young mens’ hearts fluttering, whereas the older romantics opted for Jennifer Aniston (18%), followed closely by Julia Roberts (17%) and proving that a way to a man’s heart truly is through his stomach, 16% chose Nigella Lawson.
These over 50s Casanovas were discovered by Saga and BHF as they investigated what makes hearts flutter, as part of the launch of a new fundraising partnership between Britain’s leading services provider to today’s over 50s and the nation’s heart charity
As part of the partnership Saga will be publicising the work of the BHF to Saga customers and jointly promoting fundraising activities. Saga aims to raise hundreds of thousands of pounds over the course of the partnership.
Professor Andrew Steptoe, BHF Chair of Psychology at University College London said: "There is a serious side to thinking about love and affection as we grow older. Clinical research has shown that people who enjoy high levels of emotional support and who have lots of social connections are at reduced risk for developing coronary heart disease.
"On the other hand, family discord and conflict between partners may raise risk. There are direct links between these emotional states and our biological responses in everyday life. With research funding from the British Heart Foundation, we are trying to understand these processes in detail, so that we can work out exactly how our emotional lives affect the heart.
Andrew Goodsell, Chief Executive, Saga Group said: "It is good to know that today’s over 50s are making the most of love and romance and better still, that this is good for our hearts. We are proud to be working with the British Heart Foundation and I am confident that working together we will raise money and awareness of why the nation’s over 50s should keep fit, healthy and active."
Douglas Rouse, Head of Corporate Partnerships at the British Heart Foundation said: “The money raised through our fundraising partnership with Saga, will help us in our fight against heart disease, which remains the UK’s biggest killer. Through this partnership, we will highlight the importance of maintaining a healthy heart, so romance can continue to blossom for the over 50s.”
More on the heart here
