Page 22 | Does anyone really look younger than their age?

smoleyjolie · 2023-12-04T14:10:48+00:00

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.

FreshWinterMorning · 07/12/2023 14:39

Goldenbear · 07/12/2023 13:33

Yes but Pauline Collins wasn't that age so why are you comparing her to 40 year olds today. You are actually proving the point that people do look younger dependent on looks and genes as the women photographed perhaps looks wise are more striking. I would say the last woman looks 40 though. In addition the photography now is more flattering. It is not the case that in 1989 all women looked old at 40 which was when the film came out, a better comparison maybe someone like Abba's Agnetha who is probably more comparable looks wise to the women you have posted photos of, in 1989 (when the film Shirley Valentine came out) looks young.

Equally, this thread is doubting anyone looks younger than their years not younger by decades. Someone who looks 7 years younger is quite a bit younger, 5 years is half a decade, that is younger so the OP is wrong!

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Oh FFS @Goldenbear ! By posting the pics I did (at 9.04 today,) I am NOT proving the point that some people can look way younger. I never said that! The women in those 3 pics LOOK around 40 - within 3-5 years, they don't look like they are their bloody 20s - or teens!

I said that Pauline Collins as Shirley Valentine looked 10 to 12 years OLDER than those women even though they're the same age, not that they looked really young!

I said, Pauline/Shirley looked like 52 or so (to me) and the other women look younger than her! 🙄

DrCoconut · 07/12/2023 14:40

I was asked if I am my DS's (in his 20s) partner 😱. I'm far closer to 50 than I'd like to be.

CharlotteBog · 07/12/2023 14:47

FreshWinterMorning · 07/12/2023 14:32

I am probably just tired, but eh?

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I think she means that people think that if she has children in primary school she's mid 30s or so, but looks 10 years older, when in fact she is mid/late 40s i.e. does look her age.

CharlotteBog · 07/12/2023 14:56

FreshWinterMorning · 07/12/2023 14:31

I bet it does.

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Yeah, probably. Ah well. I don't mind.

oneproudmumma · 07/12/2023 15:06

How old you look depends on so many factors including how big you are, how you dress, your diet, illnesses, stress levels, lifestyle, your genes, your ethnicity... there is no one size fits all.

Too much make up is very ageing too, irrespective of age. For that reason, I try to avoid foundation or tinted moisturiser as much as possible and just wear eyeliner and some lip gloss. Now I have hit 40 I have noticed under eye concealer settled into fine lines (!) so I rarely use it any more.

moomoomoo27 · 07/12/2023 15:09

CharlotteBog · 07/12/2023 12:31

Surely once you tell people you are not under 25 then they get beyond the initial impression and interact with you based on the words that come out of your mouth and your behaviour.

The workmen maybe thought you were a mature student (since I presume this was work on a home you own)?

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Unfortunately not, people judge endlessly on appearance. If it's someone who knows me really well, that's different.

Possibly. It seems a weird thing to immediately jump to though, since I guess there are fewer mature students than anything else.

C1N1C · 07/12/2023 15:17

Most of Asia... specifically the 'oriental' countries.. very hard to tell!

Goldenbear · 07/12/2023 15:42

Delatron · 07/12/2023 14:21

But not everyone can agree - some people will say one person looks 5 years younger (I don’t think that’s much) others will be better at guessing ages so will place them within a year either side of their age. Others may say older. We have seen that on this thread.

Without asking every single person you meet, a few people saying you look younger doesn’t add up to much meaning. I mean how often are you discussing your age? Every few weeks? I doubt it. Just because someone got ID’d last year doesn’t mean they definitively look 10 years younger right now. Or that they’ll continue to look so.

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But those posters that get told they look younger have described the frequency over their whole life, they have also explained how they don't go around bringing up their age to everyone, you are being disingenuous to suggest that. Equally, you are dismissing comments on genes playing a part, we are not identical why wouldn't some of us have looks that associated with youth. Plus it's a thread on disbelief of looking younger at all not 5-10 years.

Rummikub · 07/12/2023 16:06

Being assumed to be younger over many years eg child tickets, ID, barred from entry, being called a doll.

That is aside from the surprised reactions when others found out my age

I presumed it was my height (really short), lack of make up, ethnicity rather than genuine. However once I turned 50 it all stopped so now I believe it is because I looked much younger.

Rummikub · 07/12/2023 16:07

Oh and good genes played a big part.

Alainlechat · 07/12/2023 16:22

Yep, a colleague of mine got ID'd not that long ago and they thought she was the father's sister in the Labour ward rather than mother. She was about 50 at the time.

We call her Benjamin button.

Delatron · 07/12/2023 16:29

Goldenbear · 07/12/2023 15:42

But those posters that get told they look younger have described the frequency over their whole life, they have also explained how they don't go around bringing up their age to everyone, you are being disingenuous to suggest that. Equally, you are dismissing comments on genes playing a part, we are not identical why wouldn't some of us have looks that associated with youth. Plus it's a thread on disbelief of looking younger at all not 5-10 years.

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I got told I looked younger for the first 40 years of my life. It’s quite standard pre 40 I think. Due to reasons others have mentioned. I’ve never dismissed genes.

But I still think that many people are crap at guessing ages and that most people (especially post 45) look within 5 years of their age which isn’t much.

The guesses we have seen on here have ranged from younger to quite a bit older than the posters actually are.

Goldenbear · 07/12/2023 16:31

FreshWinterMorning · 07/12/2023 14:39

Oh FFS @Goldenbear ! By posting the pics I did (at 9.04 today,) I am NOT proving the point that some people can look way younger. I never said that! The women in those 3 pics LOOK around 40 - within 3-5 years, they don't look like they are their bloody 20s - or teens!

I said that Pauline Collins as Shirley Valentine looked 10 to 12 years OLDER than those women even though they're the same age, not that they looked really young!

I said, Pauline/Shirley looked like 52 or so (to me) and the other women look younger than her! 🙄

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But Pauline Collins literally 'is' ten years older so it doesn't prove anything about our perception of what your average 40 year old looks like, informed by images from our youth of 40 year olds. It is simply not the case that all our perceptions of the average 40 year old are like a frumpy Shirley Valentine, for a start she is supposed to be down trodden and worn out so this is not the average 40 year old in 1989, in some of our lived experience of that time. I didn't know any Shirley Valentine types so it doesn't inform my perception of someone in their 40s at all. I suggested that if you look at Agnetha (Abba) in 1989 then she looks akin to 40 year old women today so actually when people remark on someone looking younger than their years they really 'do" look younger than their years!

Goldenbear · 07/12/2023 16:46

Delatron · 07/12/2023 16:29

I got told I looked younger for the first 40 years of my life. It’s quite standard pre 40 I think. Due to reasons others have mentioned. I’ve never dismissed genes.

But I still think that many people are crap at guessing ages and that most people (especially post 45) look within 5 years of their age which isn’t much.

The guesses we have seen on here have ranged from younger to quite a bit older than the posters actually are.

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So you looked younger than you were as a baby and a toddler? Bizarre.

I don't agree that 45 is this arbitrary age of catapulting into unquestionable middle age precisely because the variability in aging.

The guesses are largely a reflection of the insecurities of the people desperate to believe this can't be the case for anyone because it isn't for them. So I recall a poster suggesting one woman could be in her 20s but also could be in her 40s so basically the readership age range of MN.

The thread is arguing that anyone is delusional if they think they look you her than they are, not 5 or 10 years younger just younger full stop! Loads of posters are lying then are they? Why would they lie about their colleagues or family members that look young that is not a reflection of their vanity.

Delatron · 07/12/2023 17:26

Goldenbear · 07/12/2023 16:46

So you looked younger than you were as a baby and a toddler? Bizarre.

I don't agree that 45 is this arbitrary age of catapulting into unquestionable middle age precisely because the variability in aging.

The guesses are largely a reflection of the insecurities of the people desperate to believe this can't be the case for anyone because it isn't for them. So I recall a poster suggesting one woman could be in her 20s but also could be in her 40s so basically the readership age range of MN.

The thread is arguing that anyone is delusional if they think they look you her than they are, not 5 or 10 years younger just younger full stop! Loads of posters are lying then are they? Why would they lie about their colleagues or family members that look young that is not a reflection of their vanity.

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It’s not about whether people look slightly younger as that would be a pointless thread. Does anyone look 1 year younger? Great thread.

Delatron · 07/12/2023 17:28

45 may seem like an arbitrary age but 43 is the most common age that people seek cosmetic tweaks. Something definitely happens for
most women between 42-48 (peri menopause must likely).

But obviously most people don’t wake up on their 45th birthday looking a decade older. You really are being obtuse. It’s obvious what I mean.

Goldenbear · 07/12/2023 17:30

Slightly younger isn't 5 or 7 to 10 years, again that is disingenuous. If someone said I looked 5 years older I wouldn't say anything but I would be a bit disappointed as that is quite a bit older. I think most people would feel that way so 5 years is not this tiny difference and is not a year or 2. 7 and 10 years are quite considerable and I wouldn't imagine everyone as you are making out has this happening to them at 40 or 30. I mean it's pretty obvious when someone is 20 as opposed to 30.

Goldenbear · 07/12/2023 17:36

Delatron · 07/12/2023 17:28

45 may seem like an arbitrary age but 43 is the most common age that people seek cosmetic tweaks. Something definitely happens for
most women between 42-48 (peri menopause must likely).

But obviously most people don’t wake up on their 45th birthday looking a decade older. You really are being obtuse. It’s obvious what I mean.

I don't know anyone who had surgery at 43, or any age perhaps it's the area I'm in. 43 is when I was doubted about my age in an official capacity at Copenhagen passport check out, he was a Danish man in his late 20s and not old, the light was unflattering, he didn't believe my 14 year old DS was my son, he said older sister. He was questioning it as he was checking and double checking my passport. Why would I make this up, I have had this my whole life but yes according to the OP this is not a thing. As has my Mum, as has my Gran when she was alive.

Riverstep · 07/12/2023 17:45

I will be shot down in flames for this but I think that women in their 40s who are overweight tend to look a bit younger than those who are still slim.

Scruffington · 07/12/2023 17:49

Having fuller cheeks is youthful but jowls/double chin can be ageing. I've seen pictures of middle aged women who've lost a lot of weight and they appear younger afterwards. Very thin is ageing after a certain point though.

Delatron · 07/12/2023 17:51

Goldenbear · 07/12/2023 17:36

I don't know anyone who had surgery at 43, or any age perhaps it's the area I'm in. 43 is when I was doubted about my age in an official capacity at Copenhagen passport check out, he was a Danish man in his late 20s and not old, the light was unflattering, he didn't believe my 14 year old DS was my son, he said older sister. He was questioning it as he was checking and double checking my passport. Why would I make this up, I have had this my whole life but yes according to the OP this is not a thing. As has my Mum, as has my Gran when she was alive.

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Oh god I said tweaks. Botox, filler etc.

It’s frustrating having to explain every post to you. Cosmetic tweaks don’t mean surgery! No not everyone ages overnight from 45 etc etc. I give up with you as I’m not sure you are even reading what is being written.

I haven’t said I don’t believe your story.

Some people aren’t good at guessing ages. But in real life I have never met anyone who is 45+ who doesn’t look within a few years of their age. Pre 40 yes somewhat but not the 15 years we hear on here. That’s my opinion.
There appears to be a disproportionate amount of youthful looking posters on Mumsnet that doesn’t reflect society. Yet we’ve only seen 3 photos. And even then the guesses on age were wildly out…

Delatron · 07/12/2023 17:52

Riverstep · 07/12/2023 17:45

I will be shot down in flames for this but I think that women in their 40s who are overweight tend to look a bit younger than those who are still slim.

It’s true. Being skinny can be very ageing.

I don’t even agree with the face or arse argument as I’m slim and my arse isn’t even that good anymore (used to be!)

Delatron · 07/12/2023 17:54

Goldenbear · 07/12/2023 17:36

I don't know anyone who had surgery at 43, or any age perhaps it's the area I'm in. 43 is when I was doubted about my age in an official capacity at Copenhagen passport check out, he was a Danish man in his late 20s and not old, the light was unflattering, he didn't believe my 14 year old DS was my son, he said older sister. He was questioning it as he was checking and double checking my passport. Why would I make this up, I have had this my whole life but yes according to the OP this is not a thing. As has my Mum, as has my Gran when she was alive.

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I think younger people are the worst at guessing ages as they have more of a preconception of what a 40+ woman must look like. It’s genuinely that.

workshy46 · 07/12/2023 18:01

I have regularly been mistaken for my husbands daughter - he looks young too
I look in and around my age - the reason being is that its a quick glance, usually indoors or out doors with sun glasses and I have a v young body and I move like a young person
Youth it virtually impossible to replicate, maybe until 45 its hard to tell but I have met maybe 2/3 people in my entire lifetime that look significantly younger than they are. Of course people act surprised when you tell them your age, its rude not to. I act surprised and say oh you look much younger even when i think they look much order !!

Goldenbear · 07/12/2023 18:32

Delatron · 07/12/2023 17:54

I think younger people are the worst at guessing ages as they have more of a preconception of what a 40+ woman must look like. It’s genuinely that.

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Of course it is - some guy in late 20s thought I was younger than him as he obviously doesn't know any women in their 20s being in his 20s himself and it was his preconceived ideas of Danish Shirley Valentine look alikes that was informing his opinion. How many faces do you think a guy in passport check out gets to look at, don't your think that job, seen as you see the date of birth of someone and corresponding faces multiple times a day, probably has quite a good idea about what your average teen, 20s and thirties, forties look like. 😂 Equally, we were in a queue, he didn't stop anyone else, by your reasoning of preconceived ideas of what 40 plus looks like, wouldn't he have at lest stopped one more person? My DH is 3 years younger than me had our and where we live is really young to be a Dad of a now 16 year old but on his late 30s at the airport a 14 year old. He is an Architect and dresses in a suitably urban way with clothes that are not aging at all so why was he not questioned?

Lip filler, Botox to me is 'work' done on your original body, it is not what you were born with it is altering your look so yes, not officially surgery I suppose but may as well be IMO!