Do you think you'll live to see 80?

[AbsentmindedWoman]

Life expectancy for a woman in the UK is about 82. Do you think you'll make it that far? Assuming no freak accidents, etc.

My life expectancy is less, because of type 1 diabetes. I like to think that because of medical advances I'll claw a few years back along the way as I age, hopefully people my age will be in better shape in mid and later life than past generations of diabetics. I think probably we all hope we'll get a few more years though!

Are you hopeful you'll get to 80 or more?

Possibly not, DM went at 78 (had alzheimer's, physically ok) , DF at 80 (opposite of DM i.e. mental state ok but physical decline.). I'd rather not hang around too long!

My youngest grandparent was 85 (my two grandmothers are still around at 89 and 94)

My grandad still had a good quality of life until he dropped dead of heart attack at 85. My other grandad still gardened and walked to church until he got pneumonia.

My grandmothers quality of life started detoriating at 85 and 88 respectively

None of my parents nor grandparents lived past 69 and neither of my parents were smokers, drinkers nor overweight, so I think there's something in our family DNA. I have a couple of health issues, so not really planning/expecting to reach 70.

I hope so, my grandparents who have passed away lived to 85 & 87, and my remaining grandparents are 81 & 88 (& in good health).

We’re a long-lived lot on both sides so I expect to reach late 80s or early 90s. My parents are still fit and healthy and travelling in their 70s.

My DM died in a car accident at 71 and was still fit and healthy. Her side of the family are long-lived. DF lied about heart disease for about 10 years then complained there was nothing that could be done for him when he did go and see about it. He was 77 when he died. His DF died at 50 of a heart attack and his uncle died 3 weeks later, also about 50 from a heart attack. DF's sister had a major stroke at 26.

I have hereditary high blood pressure, so that counts against me although my cholesterol is fine. If I start to loose my marbles, I plan on taking myself off to Dignitas so my DC don't have to deal with the horrors of dementia. Likewise, if I found that I had bad cancer, I don't would bother with chemotherapy, because I know so many people who were left with real physical health problems after chemo and in many cases were much more ill afterwards.

So, if I was okay health wise and mentally, then yeah, 80 is okay. Otherwise, I won't be around.

I would say no just because of the rate of cancers being so much higher than 30 years ago (and rising). I lost a friend ten years ago in his 20s and another friend has just been given 18 months max in his thirties so to think I myself will be living into my 80s based on the longevity of my parents seems a foolish assumption. Of course I hope we all do but quite honestly it's looking less likely with every terminal diagnosis (in a seemingly young and healthy person) that I hear of. It's something like 1 in 2 people that will get some kind of (hopefully curable) cancer in their lifetime isn't it?
It has to be something we're doing and it scares me to death.

I’ve always assumed I’ll make it to 90+. My grandmother lived to be 98 and my mother is 79.

Yes I think I will barring accidents or war. One grandmother made it to 100, the other to over 90. Uncle was 90. Two other aunts were 86. Dad and another aunt were 93. Mum is 80 this year.

But I don't want to live to an age where Parkinsons or dementia get me.

I reckon so. 3/4 of my GP’s are still alive. Only one died young (54) of lung cancer but he was exposed to a lot of secondhand smoke because he spent a large portion of his life in pubs... I still have one great-grandparent alive and two others survived well into my childhood to the extent I remember them vividly.

There’s no real history of disease in my family and I’m always the type to tick ‘no’ on every health related box. I don’t smoke, rarely drink and eat fairly well. I think I should have good innings but suppose I shouldn’t tempt fate.

The thing we’re doing to increase our risk of cancer is mostly that we’re not dying young of heart attacks Christina. We’re also diagnosing slow growing cancers in old people which would previously have gone unnoticed until their death of something else. And we are also more obese and having and breastfeeding fewer babies, so that’s a genuine cause of increase - offset by the decline in smoking, though that’s taking some time to show up in the stats for women because the wave of women who started smoking in the sixties are dominating the data.
scienceblog.cancerresearchuk.org/2015/02/04/why-are-cancer-rates-increasing/

I'm expecting to live to early 90's, but also expecting to only be well enough to appreciate life to early mid 80's. I'm hoping a get out clause will be easier to obtain by then!

Go was 94, mum 97, suspect I have a bit of longevity built in but I’ve made it clear that 85 is enough for me (I may change my mind at 84.5)

I am so saddened by all the people who don’t want to live past 70.
I’m 62. The thought that I only had 8 more years would fill me with dread. I am not as agile as I was, but I’m still doing a professional job and am far from giving up the ghost.

@shortandsweet96 I just did a bark of laughter at your very different answer to everyone else’s!

Sadly I know for a fact I won't 😥

I hope not, my future will be poverty, ill health and loneliness.

Nope. Based on my fraternal line I'll be gone 30/35 years from now. My Grandmother is still alive at 88 just to spite us all (well this is the conclusion we've come to as a family). Maternal line isn't much better, most gone by 75, although one Aunt lived to 100 (although she put that down to never having dc of her own so I'm stuffed I've got 5 )

@WakeMeUpWhenGoodOmensIsOn I understand that, but I was more referring to cases like the two friends I mentioned. One early 20s, one mid 30s and both healthy young men, non smokers with active jobs and lifestyles and no family history. That's the scary thing to me. They were buddies from a tight friendship group which makes it seem worse - 2 out of 5 with what looked like good odds. I know of more younger people who also died young of cancers but they are all people I knew less well.

I doubt it. I'll be lucky to see 60 tbh.

Probably will live that long, yes. I have a healthier lifestyle than my grandies, who made it to... 84 (lung cancer), 84 (stroke), 92 (?), 92 (colon cancer).

So pessimistic you lot. Gran (who made it to 92) had a great quality of life until last 18m, and only had bad health for last 3m, but she knew she was loved & kept comfortable.

I hope so, I'm 75 this year, don't know how I got here, but really I'm only 24.....

My DDad is 82 next month and still pootling along nicely (he's Dmum primary carer)
His Mum (my Gran) died at 95 after an accident so could've lived longer.

i don't smoke, drink, an long term vegetarian . I tell my DS that I will live to 112 . (No idea why , it just seems like a good solid number)

I probably won't due to my health issues although I would like to

Hope so. I smoked when younger, but apart from that (and I've been given up for years) I'm reasonably fit and health in my 50s. Parents are both in their 80s and extremely well and active. Grandparents all lived into 80s or 90s. I don't want to go on years past DH however, and he is 10 years older than me.