Commander-in-Chief Role Ages Our U.S. Presidents Twice as Fast

by Maureen  Kyle 

The role of Commander-in-Chief carries with it hefty responsibility and in turn, carries a hefty price.  The signs are written all over a Presidents’ face.  Dr. Michael Roizen is an expert on what he calls "body age".   It varies from a person’s actual numerical age because it factors in how well we take care of our bodies.  In the president’s case, Roizen says the job.

"Stress is the greatest ager we have."  If grey hair and worry lines are the litmus test, each president wears his stress proudly.  Dr. Michael Roizen studied the affects the oval office has had on past presidents and found that for every one year in office, the president ages two.

"So, if they’re in office eight years, a president ages 16 years.  If they’re in four years, they age eight years."  NBC’s presidential historian Michael Beschloss says the last administration change is a perfect example.  "Bush came into office looking pretty youthful. If you look at him on inauguration day 2001 standing next to Bill Clinton, those two guys are almost exactly the same age but it’s Bill Clinton who looks a lot older than George W Bush. That was before Bush went through eight years of being president."

The reason isn’t unhealthy habits.  Many presidents exercised regularly.

"Barack Obama, even during the worst of this past campaign, made sure that he got an hour of exercise almost every day."

And making big decisions is only a small part of it.  Dr. Roizen says it has to do with alienation.

"By the time they’re finished with the presidency, they have one friend, their spouse usually."

Isolation increases the impact stress can have on a person, according to Roizen, whether Democrat or Republican.

So what is the prediction for the man who was applauded for his cool attitude during the election?

"No Drama Obama, if you will, that outer calmness is really very impressive but is he calm inside or is that why he has to reach for the cigarettes every now and then because he doesn’t have a good stress mechanism."

Only time will tell.