Boomeritis
First I spoke of “Boomeritis” in jest, having some fun with my generation, the boomers, but the more I thought about it, the more I felt that I was on to something new conceptually, something that will be around for a long time. I was actually prompted to think deeper about this by Claudia Kalb for her story “The Jock vs. The Clock” for Newsweek Magazine. It was a wonderful article that paved the road for the many to follow and although she never used my term “Boomeritis”, a new word was born.
Boomeritis is a new phenomenon because the baby boomers are the first generation that is trying to stay active, in droves, on an aging frame. Fitness and activity are important keys to healthy aging. Certainly there were a few enlightened individuals before the boomers who adopted the active lifestyle, but in general, prior generations did not. My parents, for example, rarely if ever did planned exercise. If they tried something and were sore the following day, they would never go back to that activity again. Things have also changed in other ways. At the turn of the last century (Circa 1900) the average life expectancy was only 46. We are now living into our late 70’s and even 80’s in some countries.
Although we have extended our life span, we have not extended the warranty on our frame or musculoskeletal system and things breakdown. Various tissues, bone, tendon, muscle, spinal discs, etc. go through predictable wear and degeneration with aging. It’s like gray hairs and wrinkles, we all get them. Many of these changes occur under the radar, without any symptoms. Add to this old injuries, planned overuse, and the “no pain, no gain” mindset and you have vulnerable parts, and orthopaedic waiting rooms and OR’s filled with these individuals.
Although boomers were the first to emerge with “Boomeritis” in large numbers, future generations, X, Y, and whatever will continue to live longer and have to contend with bones and joints that were not designed to go that distance, and parts are not always easy to get.