AGING BABY BOOMERS MAY HELP SLOW DOWN SOCIETY.

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You may have to wait longer at a traffic signal as baby boomers age, says Royda Crose, associate director and coordinator of gerontology at the Fisher Institute for Wellness and Gerontology, Ball State University, Muncie, Ind. "As our society ages, it may slow down, and that could be a plus. Slowing down our stressed high-energy society will be good for everybody's well-being."

The generation entering its 50s is the first to have the luxury to examine personal issues, she maintains. "What we now call the 'me' generation grew up when it became possible to focus on individual needs. After the Depression and World War II, they could focus on quality of life instead of just survival."

The postwar generation began looking at its health in new ways, inspired by Pres. John F. Kennedy's physical fitness initiatives. "You didn't even mention menopause in public until a few years ago. And with such things as Viagra, many health issues have been taken out of the closet and have become more prominent."

The baby boomers began questioning authority as they dealt with the...