10 Health Issues Plaguing Boomers

NEW YORK (MainStreet) — It is estimated that in the next 19 years, 10,000 baby boomers will turn 65 each day, putting a strain on America’s health care system.

It isn’t just the “older” boomers who will be experiencing health issues. Younger boomers typically born between 1956 and 1964, or what some in the media call the “Shadow Generation,” are hitting midlife and starting to show their age in medical issues.

Mainstreet has compiled 10 of the most common health issues boomers face, breaking them down by younger and older boomers. We’ve also added the estimated annual cost of treating each condition. Keep in mind those costs can be higher or lower depending on the scope of illness and treatment. 

Health Issues Young Boomers Face

Sheryl Kraft, a young boomer and health blogger who writes a column at Midlife Matters, said she not only experiences some of these ailments, but hears about them from her readers.

“Stiffness, problems with teeth, dry eyes and waning vision, fatigue, insomnia or frequent waking, memory problems, weight gain, hearing loss, urinary frequency and stress are all common complaints,” Kraft said.

Some of those health issues made our top five list of ailments young boomers face, provided by Dr. Stephen Jones, a geriatrics specialist at Greenwich Hospital in the Yale New Haven Health system. Jones is writing a book on preparing America for the onslaught of aging boomers.

Type 2 diabetes

1.9 million cases of Type 2 diabetes were diagnosed last year, the majority of them being in people ages 40 and up.

“I think it is due to people eating more fast food and eating on the run,” Jones says. Type 2 diabetes can contribute to a wealth of medical issues including heart disease, foot problems, eye problems and kidney disease.

Average treatment cost per person: $4,687 for foot problems, $9,002 for kidney disease and $14,150 for a heart attack.

High blood pressure

High blood pressure can strike anyone, anytime, but Jones says many young boomers will begin to see this.

“It goes hand in hand with obesity, which is a problem in our society,” Jones says.

Average treatment cost per person: Hundreds of dollars for medication, up to $7,806 if a person has a stroke.