There is a notion that women feel invisible as they get older, are they actually feeling invisible, or is it the fact that they don’t see themselves represented anywhere?

Research recently found that 34.4% of women agreed with the statement ‘After menopause women become invisible in our society’; 53.4% agree that ‘older women are not valued in our society and 67.3% agree ‘The media is so obsessed with youth that it makes it very difficult for older women to get noticed’. *

So little advertising features a woman over fifty, when we are featured it’s mainly for stair-lifts, walk-in baths and life insurance, an unrealistic image for today’s woman in her fifties. 

Companies market to the over fifties, that’s anyone from 50-100.  How can people aged 50 be grouped with people of 80?  Do we not have very different needs between these years?

Would companies talk to the 16-45 age groups in the same way? 

No one wants to feel or be treated as old, yet who represents us, the woman who is still taking care of herself, is fit, healthy and has a positive outlook about growing older.

We are surrounded by negative images of the mature woman.  Not long ago the BBC sacked Miriam O’Neil and Arlene Philips, these women no longer fitted the BBC’s criteria.  Since when did youth trump experience and knowledge?

Have we become a society that no longer values our elders?  Are we so worried about a person’s appearance that we judge purely on their looks?

Half the population are over 50, that’s a staggering amount of people and a high proportion of those are women.  We are now expected to work longer as our life expectancy is higher.  This also creates another challenge to keep up with not only technology, but also younger colleagues.

We have the knowledge, treatments and products to keep us looking and feeling well as we head into our old age, what we now have to do is put these into practice to lay the foundations for the future.

Yet so many people are starting to feel depressed and worried about getting older, when the alternative quite frankly – sucks!

So how do you stay positive, if you are constantly faced with either unobtainable or depressing images?  I believe we have to change our perceptions of old age and start to educate people how to look after themselves better, to think positively, and to prepare for the future and not dread it.

I hope that Fighting Fifty will challenge the perceptions people have of women over fifty.

*Taken from a sample of 287 women aged between 40 and 60 years of age.