Members of the Association of British Dispensing Opticians (ABDO) board took to local and national radio to highlight the findings of its latest consumer research into the ‘sandwich generation.’
ABDO said the sandwich generation term was coined by social worker Dorothy Miller in 1981 and described those who were sandwiched between looking after young children and aging parents, as their primary caregivers. It added that the 40-60 age group was entering presbyopia and at increasing risk of sight-threatening eye disease, but perceived themselves as too young for both glasses and eye disease.
A quarter of the 2000 sandwich generation members surveyed spent more time looking after the health of others than their own and 17 % admitted that their own health suffered due to the demands of looking after others. As a result, 20 per cent said they felt pressured by their growing responsibilities and 72 per cent placed their child’s health above their own.
The research also highlighted eye health as key area sacrificed due to lack of time, with 7 per cent having not been to an optician for nine years or more.
