Does anyone really look younger than their age?

[smoleyjolie]

Online on forums, social media, on dating profiles and even in real life people claim to look younger than their age, they are X age but don't look it. They get ID's in the supermarket buying wine.

I am always highly sceptical because I've know people who say to my face how they look like they are 25 when they are actually 38 because they have no lines or wrinkles when I am looking at them and thought they were actually in their 40's and they have obvious wrinkles and grey hair, people are delusional! Honestly the capacity people have to delude themselves about anything is quite staggering and I have never met someone who claims to look younger and it actually turn out to be true.

When I was younger I thought some older people looked younger so I once thought a woman when she was 49 was closer to 30 but that was because I assumed all people of 49 looked "old" which isn't the case at all and looking back she looked great but she also looked her age which is fine.

Going back to the first case where the women was convinced she looked over 10 years younger, what could I say I just said yeah you look great and its the same anytime anyone makes that claim. People aren't going to dispute it.

Until I was maybe mid 50s I definitely looked much younger. People used to guess that I was 5 to 10 years younger. It wasn’t me being deluded or them trying to flatter me - my family confirmed it. When I was a college lecturer in my mid 20s the security and library staff used to think I was a student.
Now I’m in my 60s and I think I do look it! But I don’t have wrinkles, so I feel lucky about that.

I was told yesterday by someone I just met that I should "enjoy my youth" and that I look "youthful"....I'm 31...to me that's something I would say to someone who is mid 20s and younger 🤷🏼‍♀️

But.......... you're 31. 31! Of course you will look 'youthful' at 31.

Snap. I am 35 and still get mistaken for being 24/25ish. My partner is younger than me and when i first met his dad his dad asked him why he was hanging around young girls lol

I seem to get a variety of ages, obvs I'm not 20s but people have said anything from 32 to 55 as "I'm hard to age"
I was thanks... I think

@NChance I think you look about my age and I am 46, love your hair!

My mother was generally estimated 10 years younger than she actually was by the time she was 30-40, only somewhat exacerbated by having had us in her mid-30s at a time that was still more unusual. By the time she was 60 people thought she was 15 years younger at least. She stayed very quiet about her age as she was self-employed and too aware that many parents of her students would have moved if they'd realised she was nearing 70. People at her church, where they had an active bible study group, were stunned to discover she was significantly the oldest, in her 80s when they thought she was one of the younger ones not yet 70.

She's just moved back to the UK and is preferring to deal with some issues face to face, as at least when people see her they accept she is elderly, and might need some help with stuff, compared to the "just do X, it's easy" that she runs into on the phone.

@Lostsadandconfused
I can't tell which one is older. But it'd put you both at 48-52. I can tell you've both had work done. You both look great!

@hihihihihihihihihihi
I think you're one of the tricky ones that I wouldn't be surprised if you said you were 28 but also 48.

I’m the one on the right (actually a redhead).

I’m 55 and my sister is 57.

She has had a little bit of work done so will be delighted that a lot of posters think she’s the younger, but no one in real life ever thinks that.

Neither of us think we look significantly younger than we are, just ‘well preserved’ or ‘good for our age’, yet whenever anyone asks the reaction is always shocked disbelief. I say this because I agree with the theory that most people are just flattering you and/or being polite, you don’t really look very much younger.

@NChance you’re another tricky one that could be anywhere from early thirties to late forties, it’s impossible to tell from that photo. If I saw you in RL I’d probably have a better idea.

I’m in awe of all of you brave enough to put your photos on MN 😊

I thought you were both around that age - you both look well maintained with work done, but still around your mid fifties (my age).

Some people do look younger, especially when they’re in their 30s and early 40s. After that very few people look a lot younger. I think people are told by other people that they look young, so that’s probably why they think it. I don’t think anyone apart from very vain people stand admiring themselves in the mirror thinking - how young and fabulous I look! My mum looks much younger than she is - she’s in her early 60s and genuinely looks 10 years younger. People constantly comment on it. When you see her among other people her age she looks younger than them. She eats a whole foot diet, exercises regularly and has money for expensive skincare products and treatments too, all of which help. I always looked young for my age, up until around 37/38 people thought I was late 20’s or very early 30s, but now I’m 45 and people normally put me anywhere between 38 to my real age. No one thinks I’m 30 any more lol.

Bless you my child. I commiserate.

My friend is 40 and gets offered under 25s discounts.. half Chinese she has no wrinkles and is slim and dresses like a gen z

@FreshWinterMorning
I appreciate that in comparison to other age groups that sounds youthful to you..but as someone who just completed an undergraduate degree as a mature student, surrounded by school leavers, I personally do not feel I am in the bracket of being defined as youthful.
I guess it's just subjective!

I'm 41 and most people guess my age to be about 32/33/34. I personally think I look my age and have some spectacular crows feet going on. But, my forehead is quite smooth. I was recently in a bar and a woman asked my age (she was trying to figure out if we went to school together). Both she and the barmaid were shocked when I said 41. She was 32 and assumed I was around her age.

I've always taken care of my skin and I have a round face which I think helps.

Perhaps it is just perception though and people think I should look 'older' for 41 🤷🏼‍♀️

I’m 36 and no greys, I dress young. However my face says I’m 36 and I wouldn’t have thought anyone would would think I’m younger. Like you say, I don’t think this applies to many people. My mum just turned 70 though and she definitely looks young for 70, 10 years younger and she always has looked a bit younger really

Have we heard back from @HeavenCANTwait ??

yes. she's 51.

The thing is, pretty much everybody gets told they look younger than they are. Doesn't mean it's true.

Because imagine somebody IRL telling you that they're, say, 50. That's about what you thought, or maybe you thought they were actually older.

Do you a. say yes, i thought you were / oh I thought you were older
Or b. say oh wow, you don't look it / I thought you were younger!

Doesn't matter what they look like, most people would opt for b out of politeness / wanting to make the other person feel good.

But we haven’t heard back from the sisters that love this game? Or have we and I missed it.

Oh we have sorry - didn’t come up as a new post!

Why would you say either? If someone tells you their age, you don't have to comment on it. I certainly wouldn't unless they looked very young for their age and it was surprising.