Survey highlights age discrimination in UK

Charity Age UK says discrimination on the grounds of age should be made as unacceptable as any other form of prejudice following the publication of a report highlighting the extent of ageist attitudes and behavior in the United Kingdom.

The report, Ageist Britain, carried out by the SunLife Insurance Company, compiled after questioning 4,000 British adults and analysis of a wide range of social media posts. It gauged the level of discrimination against people over the age of 50.

"Ageism must become as unacceptable as every other form of discrimination," said Caroline Abrahams, charity director of Age UK.

People in their 30s were found to be the biggest offenders, with more than half admitting to being ageist. More than one-third responders to the survey said they discriminated on age grounds.

The city of Southampton was found to be the UK's most ageist city, with 46 percent of those questioned locally admitting to having discriminated against someone on age grounds. Bristol was the least ageist, with a figure of 20 percent.

Among over 50s, 40 percent said they regularly experience ageism, with the workplace being the most common site.

There are concerns that damage caused by casual ageism can affect mental health and even hasten the onset of dementia, with life-limiting consequences. Among over 50s, 52 percent said ageism made them feel alienated, and 68 percent said they felt less valued by society.

Emma Twyning at the Centre for Ageing Better said a lot of damage was being done by what she called an "ageist societal narrative".

"The evidence suggests that this ageist societal narrative negatively impacts on our personal experiences of aging and perhaps even our health and well-being," she said.

Television presenter Carol Vorderman, 58, who worked with the survey organizers, qualified as a pilot at the age of 54, and agreed that negative stereotypes downplayed the joys of older age.

"We're bombarded with phrases and behaviors which imply that life after 50 must be awful and that it's 'downhill all the way'. That just isn't true," she said.

"Life after 50 is a great kind of different. It can be the best time of all: less stressful, less competitive, freer, happier, more joyful. Life at any age is there to embrace, so it's time we stopped using ageist language, intentional or not."