Fountain of Youth
Most children born today will live to be over 100 years old. As a result, “middle age” now sets in later. In fact, 60s is the new 40s, a trend that has garnered its own name: middlessence or troisième age (third age) in France. If anything, the trend suggests that we now have to take much better care of ourselves, which is the fundamental force behind the Fountain of Youth Ubertrend.
With two full generations to live longer than just 100 years ago, aging boomers will lead to a doubling of the 65+ population in the next 25 years. And while a U.S. government demographic study found that fewer than one in five men 65 and older were part of the labor force in 2003, compared to nearly half the men that age in 1950, financially stretched boomers may have to keep working way beyond 70. Not surprisingly, 69% of boomers said they plan to keep working beyond age 65, according to a September 2002 AARP study.
But boomers are not the only demographic driving the Fountain of Youth. A beauty-oriented and celebrity-obsessed culture has led to such startling phenomena as teenagers getting breast lifts. These combined forces are spurring a beauty and rejuvenation industry estimated to be a $128 billion U.S. market.
Here’s a capsule overview of all the subtrends propelled by the Fountain of Youth:
Anti-aging Medicine
The anti-aging industry, with an estimated $56 billion in revenues in the U.S., is projected to surge to $79 billion by 2009, according to the American Academy of Anti-aging Medicine (A4M).
A4M has already certified more than 1,500 doctors in anti-aging medicine since 1996. And while no clinical evidence exists to support this avant-garde dabbling in non-FDA approved medicine, early patient feedback points to startling results.
“Age management” treatments include megadoses of supplements, such as DHEA, glucosamine, Omega3 and anti-oxidant vitamins C and E, bolstered by human growth hormone (HGH), plus a dose of testosterone to increase libido and energy.
Human growth hormone therapy is an essential part of age-management techniques and typically is administered via easy-to-use syringes, they’re designed for children after all, like Genotropin’s MiniQuick.
In 2003, a placebo-controlled, randomized study of people 65 and older found that growth hormones increased lean body mass and decreased fat mass, but some study subjects also experienced frequent side effects including diabetes and glucose intolerance.
While most HGH prescriptions are written for children, 74% in 2004 went to people ages 20 and older. Sales of HGH in 2004 totaled $622 million for legitimate and non-legitimate uses. Pfizer’s Genotropin was one of the HGH drugs reportedly taken by baseball player Barry Bonds, who morphed from a skinny Pittsburgh player into a raging-roid fireplug, who suddenly hit a record 80 homeruns in 2000.
Body Shaping (Minimally Invasive Procedures)
Non- or minimally invasive treatments, which require little or no downtime, so-called “lunchtime procedures,” are strongly preferred by consumers and are gaining most in popularity. Lasers and other devices that claim to “firm and smooth” aging skin are among the fastest-growing cosmetic procedures.
Some doctors who have used the equipment wonder about its effectiveness and criticize aggressive promotions by manufacturers, laser centers and medical spas.
The UltraShape Contour 1, from Israel-based UltraShape, uses ultrasound technology to destroy fat cells. The Contour 1 is being used in Europe for “lunch-hour” procedures ($1,400-$1,700) and awaits FDA approval in the U.S.
Nevertheless, revenues for body-shaping treatments were estimated to be $4.2 billion worldwide in 2005, the last year for which data is available, and are expected to rise to $7.5 billion in 2010, according to Medical Insight, an Aliso Viejo, Calif. research firm.
Cosmetic Dentistry
Aging boomers have also whipped the teeth-whitening industry into a frenzy. An American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry survey found a 300% increase in tooth-whitening treatments in the past five years. The media-driven trend has become a $5 billion per year industry, reports In Style, with total cosmetic dentistry estimated at $15 billion of the $70-billion-a-year U.S. dental industry.
Facial Rejuvenation (Minimally Invasive Procedures)
When the Food and Drug Administration approved Botox for cosmetic use in 2002, it helped spark a cultural phenomenon that included Botox parties, Botox gift cards and, naturally, jokes.
The popularity of Botox, an injectable muscle relaxant that smoothes foreheads and crows feet, also helped spur a whole new medical specialty: facial rejuvenation. Today, a host of new injectables are being marketed that promise to fill wrinkles and creases.
Botox, one of the most poisonous naturally occurring neurotoxins in the world, will generate $500 million in sales for drug maker Allergan this year.
The American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS) says the number of cosmetic surgical procedures actually fell in 2005 by 5% to 1.8 million compared with five years earlier. But over the same period, the number of “minimally invasive procedures,” including facial injections and laser treatments, grew 53% to 8.4 million. The top five minimally-invasive procedures include Botox (3.8 million), chemical peel (1 million), microdermabrasion (840,000), laser hair removal (780,000), and sclerotherapy, the elimination of spider veins (590,000).
The American Academy of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery (AAFPRS) has it in a different order, with the most common cosmetic non-surgical procedures performed by its plastic surgeon members being Botox, microdermabrasion, Hyaluronic acid and chemical peels.
But as doctors and patients become more familiar with the art of filling, it’s clear that facial “remodeling” will become a major market force. In December 2003, the FDA approved the use of Restylane for smoothing wrinkles and enhancing lips, which launched a whole new rejuvenation category, facial fillers.
Restylane, manufactured by Medicis Pharmaceutical, is a gel made of an organic material that eventually breaks down, in this instance hyaluronic acid found in roosters’ combs. Demand for anti-aging injectables is booming. New to the market is Allergan’s Juvéderm, which competes with Radiesse, a cosmetic treatment made by BioForm Medical, and market leader Restylane.
The U.S. facial filler market is currently worth about $250 million a year, triple the figure of just four years ago, estimates San Mateo, Calif.-based BioForm.
Allergan, widely known for its Botox antiwrinkle shots, received FDA approval for facial filler Juvéderm in June 2006.
Pharmaceuticals
The quest to reinvigorate the body and spirit has gone beyond meditation and massage. Wonder drugs are helping many stave off destiny. Heart disease is now better managed with statins, anti-cholesterol drugs, a $25 billion global market.
Research shows that adults who multitask regularly have more memory complaints than their older parents, according to psychologist Denise Park at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. At least 12 biotech companies are working on a drug to combat this trend.
Irvine, Calif.-based Cortex Pharmaceuticals is testing Ampakine CX717, a drug that can improve memory after just 12 weeks of taking one capsule each day.
Research shows that if a mouse’s daily caloric intake is reduced by 30%, it will live at least 30% longer than its normal two-year life span. Apparently, a stressed body produces protective substances that extend life. Two Cambridge, Mass.-based biotechs are working on drugs that mimic the beneficial aspects of reduced caloric intake, Sirtris Pharmaceuticals and Elixir Pharmaceuticals.
Plastic Surgery
The American Academy of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery (AAFPRS) reports that cosmetic procedures were up 34% in 2006, compared to 2005, a market estimated at north of $13 billion in the U.S. alone.
And while cosmetic surgery grew 9% among men in 2005, fully 79% of all surgical procedures and 80% of all non-surgical procedures were performed on women. The number one ranked procedure on women in 2005 was lip augmentation, followed by fat injections, with microdermabrasion earning third place.
Spas & Medspas
The stresses of modern living have driven record numbers to spas. Between 1999 and 2003, spa revenues more than doubled, zooming from $5 billion to $11.2 billion, while the number of spa outlets jumped from 5,300 in 1999 to 12,100, according to a January 2005 report by the International SPA Association.
Spas are a $40 billion global industry and the fourth-largest U.S. leisure industry, taking in more revenue than ski resorts, amusement parks and box office receipts combined, Frommers.com reported in May 2006.
Consumers no longer see spa visits as “pampering,” which explains why men make up 24% of spa clientele. High-end spas have also begun adding such services as Botox injections, chemical peels, collagen and dermabrasion to their regular regimen of pampering for women and men, a trend that accelerated after the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved the cosmetic use of Botox in April 2002, leading to the emergence of “medspas.”
The International SPA Association also reports that the medical-spa niche grew faster than any segment of the U.S. spa industry from 2002 to 2004, growing 109% vs. 26% for the U.S. spa industry as a whole.
The Association says 471 U.S. spas offered medical treatments in 2004, ranging from day spas that sell Botox shots to destination resorts offering diagnosis and treatment by board-certified physicians. The International Medical Spa Association now puts the number of such spas at more than 1,000.At the same time, the number of spas in the U.S. doubled between 2000 and 2004 to 12,100.
Yoga
Yoga, bubbling under the surface for more than 30 years, has exploded. An estimated 16.5 million Americans now practice this 5000-year-old art, more than triple the number just four years ago, according to a February 2005 Yoga Journal/Harris Interactive study. Yoga practioners now spend $3 billion annually on classes and products, report the researchers.
The mainstreaming of yoga street fashions has floated the boat of lululemon athletica, the premier yoga apparel brand. On July 27, the company raised $328 million from Canada’s largest initial public offering this year.
lululemon’s shares rose 56% on the first day of trading, jumping $10 to $28 on Nasdaq, giving the Vancouver-based company a market value of $1.9 billion.
Yoga clothing has become a $1 billion business. Vancouver-based lululemon athletica, whose wares have been featured on ”Desperate Housewives,” has seen sales double every year since it was founded in 1998, and tripling in the past two, reaching $149 million for the 12 months ending January, 2007.
Born between 1946 and 1964, Baby Boomers, numbering 450 million in the Western world, are the world’s richest generation. Their forever-young attitudes are guaranteed to substantially lift the beauty, wellness and rejuvenation markets. And a youthful spirit is something you can bank on.