George Clooney, now in his late 40s, has grey hair on his head. It's supposed to be a mark of distinction, but going grey is now the top concern for British men, according to new research.
It's supposed to be a mark of distinction, but going grey is now the top concern for British men, according to new research.
Hair color is the number one appearance concern for men today, with more than half of British men worrying about graying hair, and 45 marks the age when panic really sets in, according to a poll from market research firm Mintel.
"Although grey hair is traditionally seen as a mark of distinction in men, the reality is many men are unhappy with their newfound gravitas," Mintel Head of Beauty Research Vivienne Rudd said in a statement.
"The physical changes associated with aging can act as a catalyst to mid-life crisis and our research has discovered that men become less content with their appearance after the age of 45."
Hair loss or thinning, is the second most common concern, worrying 40 percent of the respondents to the Mintel survey of 2,000 British men.
Unwanted hair (in the nose and ears) preoccupied 38 percent of respondents, being overweight bothered 37 percent and 30 percent were worried about yellowing teeth.
Mintel said that men appeared to be more accepting than women when it came to their appearance, but found that at 45 years of age, men become increasingly less happy with their looks.
More than a quarter of men aged 45-54 dislike four aspects of their appearance compared to an average of just over one in 10 men overall.
Rudd said that delayed retirement and working later into life than their parents did as the British population ages will bring older men into competition with younger colleagues.
"As a result, older people may feel the need to try to maintain appearance and therefore bring a future boost to the male grooming market," she said.
头发颜色原本只是区分年龄的一个标志，然而一项最新调查显示，对于英国男性来说，头发变白是他们最关心的问题。
据敏特市场调查公司开展的一项民调显示，头发颜色是如今英国男性最关注的外表问题，超过一半的人对慢慢长出的白发感到担忧，而过了45岁后这种恐慌的情绪便真正到来。
敏特公司美容研究部主管薇薇恩•路德在一项声明中说：“尽管白发一直被认为是区分男性年龄的标志，但事实上很多男性对标志着庄重的白发并不感到高兴。”
“与衰老有关的身体变化会成为引发中年危机的催化剂，我们的调查发现男性在45岁后对自己的外表越来越不满意。”
据这项对2000名英国男性开展的调查显示，脱发或头发稀疏是男性担心的第二大形象问题，有40%的受访者对此感到担忧。
38%的受访者不希望（鼻子和耳朵）长出毛发，37%的受访者最担心肥胖问题，30%的人担心牙齿变黄。
敏特公司称，男性比女性似乎更能接受自己的外表，但调查发现，过了45岁以后，男性对自己的相貌越来越不满意。
在年龄在45岁到54岁之间的男性中，超过四分之一的人对自己的外表不满意，而从受访男性总体看，平均只有略超过十分之一的人对自己的外表不满意。
路德说，随着英国人口的老龄化，退休年龄推迟、工作年限延长使得年龄较大的人不得不与年轻人去竞争。
“这样，年龄较大的人可能就会觉得需要对自己的容貌进行保养，从而会推动男性美容市场的发展。”
set in: to begin and seem likely to continue（到来；开始）
gravitas: dignity, formality in bearing and appearance（庄重；庄严）
catalyst: a person or thing that causes a change（促使变化的人；引发变化的因素）
preoccupy: if something is preoccupying you, you think or worry about it very often or all the time（使日夜思考；使忧心忡忡）
grooming: the things that you do to keep your clothes and hair clean and neat（打扮；装束）