To ask what age you would say is no longer dying young

75 is old in terms of (current) lifespan, which is really what concepts like "dying young" vs "a good innings" refer to.

That functionally you're living a great life is separate from this.

At 75, you are well past the halfway mark of the most optimistic estimates of your lifespan and also, you've already had a long life and have accumulated the wisdom, skills, relationships and habits to reflect that.

Old isn't or shouldn't be a dirty word. It doesn't mean dependant, decrepit, worthless or not to be mourned(!)

If you die over 75, you're not dying young. If children were part of your life, they are grown. You have well exceeded pension age. Whereas if you'd died at 35, you'd have missed out on the last 40 years! It's extraordinarily unlikely that you've got another 40 years ahead, and if you did, they won't be remotely as formative.

Doctor - anything under 85 is young to me now ! 🫶😊

@MidnightMeltdown Yes, I’ve joked with DH that we’re in sniper’s alley now. 50-70 does seem to be a period that you either get through relatively unscathed (and probably then live to a ripe old age), or something nasty hits you.

I would say 50. By this point you are well into late middle age. I know a few people who died around this age, and while shocking, I wouldn’t say it was young. Your 50s are known as ‘sniper’s alley’ for a reason.

I hope I live to a ripe old age, but at least by the age of, say, 70, I'll have had my best years health-wise. Whilst some of the elderly people I've known lived full active lives, others had far less freedom due to dementia or substantial disabilities caused by strokes or Parkinson's disease. In some cases, they also had depression. The ages on their gravestones really didn't tell the full story.

Also, when I think of the people I knew who died much younger, I can't honestly say I'd be short-changed if I didn't make it past 70. I knew people who died at 9, 13, 14, 15, 19, 22 (2 people), 27, 29, 46 and 55. Several of them were people I went to school with. They made up a small minority of my peers, but individually they were robbed of so much.

Yes and no. If you claimed your pension today, those are the eligibility requirements.

In future years they could (a) change the number of years of NI required (b) lift the age minimum or (c) means test the pension, and so your current entitlement could vanish. There’s no one putting aside your £x/weekly of NI taxation for your specific benefit in future years, unlike a workplace pension.

75, though I still am surprised if someone dies in their 70s unless it was from cancer or something. My dad died at 79 and he was still active and fit so it felt too young (he had a stroke). I’d say once you get into your 80s it’s not so much a surprise.

My friend died last year. He was 70.
I thought he was old. But actually he was only 15 years older than me.

That really made me feel old.

Why do you think that makes what appleginger wrote untrue?. She's correct.

The state pension is a pittance compared to some other countries - maybe the Govt should put aside more money to raise it so that pensioners aren't in poverty in their later years

That's odd. Because I've paid national insurance for over 30 years - ditto taxes. According to the govt I have to pay 35 years worth of NI contributions to get my full state pension

Is that not the case?

80+ now I think.

I think as a sweeping statement I think I’m not surprised if someone dies over 75 - so I think that’s the point when I no longer think of them as young to die.

But it’s very dependent on the individual in reality. There is someone I know who is 65 and I wouldn’t be at all surprised if they died because they are a very old 65. Equally I know someone who is 83 who seems so much younger and I would probably feel he was too young to die if he died now.

It's true that it's the mean, but there are relatively few people dying very young so it doesn't bring the average down that much. As you note, the median is 82.3 so half of men will die by that age.

I get that a death might feel out of the blue and a sudden shock if someone was old but in good health until their death, but that doesn't mean that they died young in my view if you see what I mean.

No, I’m saying that the ratio of workers to people on post retirement benefits has to be kept in check otherwise it’s unaffordable. There’s 2 ways to do this: means test the pension, or lift the age of first payment.

No one “pays in”; their taxation funds current pensioners. There’s no account set aside for your retirement by the government. Your state pension will be funded by that generation’s tax payers.

70s

@scottishgirl69 Ah, I see what you mean.

I agree wit them that a fit 60-year-old will bounce back from a fall- although if they break any bones, they may not be bouncing for several months!

I'd say 80.

Sorry what? Are you trying to suggest that people should die younger as not to claim too much retirement benefits

The absolute opposite should be true given that people pay into it for 30 years and some people die before they get their state pension

I’d love to know when I was going to die, I’d like a date so I could work around it. I spend a lot of time worrying about it so I’d rather have confirmation. 😂 my parents died youngish imo, DM 69, Dad 70.

I was responding to someone who said that they would bounce back from a fall at 60. I broke my arm at 38. That was the point I was making - that you can have a fracture at any age. I've had several

Agree with this 👌🏼

I'm strong and fit too - but age has nothing to do with whether you jump up and bounce back if you trip and fall.

@scottishgirl69 A strong and fit 80-year-old will take longer to heal than a younger person though even if they don’t have any medical conditions. Cells divide more slowly which extends the time it takes for wounds to close; less collagen; reduced bone density, etc.

I had a bad accident last year at 50 and was frustrated at how long it took for the fractures to heal.. I even paid for a DEXA scan to check whether I had signs of osteoporosis-nope, I have normal bone density for a woman of my age.

But I don’t heal like a 25-year-old and the healing time will only extend in the future. I imagine that’s why some elderly people go downhill after a fall, it takes so long to get better, they get bed bound and depressed.

I'm so sorry. That absolutely sucks. Life is very much a literal lottery.

Wow, 75?? These days? I'm 75. I get up at 5 a.m. every day. I spend 2 hours 6-8 a.m. working really hard in my one acre garden- cutting hedges, pulling weeds, pruning trees, spraying and treating my dozens of citrus, fig, banana and soft fruit trees. I make vast quantities of jams and chutneys -the fruit and preserves go to needy people in the community. In winter, rather than going out into the garden, I write books, 5 to 8 a.m. I teach archaeology, French and Japanese at U3A, and atttend groups in history, genetics and geology. I'm teaching myself Italian. DH and I recently spent 2 months travelling in Canada and the Med, walking a minimum of 15,000 steps per day, exploring historical/archaeological sites. We're going abroad for another 2 months in April, and again in November. I fly regularly abroad to visit grandchildren. Had I not had minor heart surgery 2 years ago, I'd be dead, so yes, from that point of view, I'm past the age of a reasonable life expectancy - but I'm far from old in terms of achievements.