Do coin collectors live longer?

BigRed

I have read a few times where coin collectors live longer because it gives a person a purpose. This is very true after retirement when sometimes people just do not know what to do with thierselves after thier working years and collecting fills that void.It can also be a very relaxing hobby and maybe be a way to relieve stress. On the other hand coin collecting can be a very inactive pursuit and well lets just say if all a person does is sit at a computer everyday or study and read about coins you don't get much exercise or activity which can lead to health problems. I would like to hear your opinions.

RYK

My guess is that coin collecting does not have a material impact on lifespan. While I agree somewhat with the positive health attributes of collecting suggested by the OP, I also see a lot of bad lifestyle tendencies and habits among coin collectors which probably counterbalance any salutary benefits. I suspect that one's genetic make-up and other choices have a much larger influence.

seemyauction

Interesting question, I've never read anything on the sebject.

Barry

Perhaps I'm wrong, but I get the impression from coin show attendees that there's a higher %age of smokers and overwieght people among collectors than the general population. So, I think not.

Bear

We would live longer

if the wives do not discover

how much money we spend on coins.

sonoranmonsoon

not sure if they live longer, but I a pretty sure they go blind earlier. Especially the vammers....lol

STEWARTBLAYNUMIS

Present day coin collectors suffer from frustration due to a new disease called fundsarelow,cost too much and drooling excessively

The FBI has been on the prowl because of new mental illnesses concerning frustrated "Real Coin" collectors thinking of collecting "Modern Crap"

Do coin collectors live longer ?

Watch me and see

Stewart

It is all the fault of PCGS !!!!!!!!!!

BigRed

<< <i>Present day coin collectors suffer from frustration due to a new disease called fundsarelow,cost too much and drooling excessively

The FBI has been on the prowl because of new mental illnesses concerning frustrated "Real Coin" collectors thinking of collecting "Modern Crap"

Do coin collectors live longer ?

Watch me and see

Stewart

It is all the fault of PCGS !!!!!!!!!! >>


Yes I know, I am in the advanced stages of "fundsarelow" but I didn't think it would kill me!!

morgansforever

Good question, not sure if there is a correlation between coin collecting and good health.

The local dealers here are short and fat. Infact one of them is as tall as he is wide. Almost like a human globe.

Eats Burger King everyday, not good.

ambro51

Yup. My palm reader told me......100, maybe longer.

This same guy told me to sell apple and get out of the market....apple was 189 and it was november 13 (my birthday). That move out has saved me 35% of my money.

He also told me I was surrounded by cows. (this is nj now, not the great dairylands) My wife wallpapered the kitchen in tiny cow print about fifteen years ago, when Im home, I sit in the kitchen a lot.

He told me to buy rare coins, which I did.

...and a dozen other things which are spooky true.

Check back with me in 2054 Ill let you know how the first prediction is going.

Michigan

As mentioned by others I see a lot of overweight dealers at coin shows which tends toward bad health, I'm sure a lot of it is work related
in that if they are regulars on the coin show circuit they probably end up going to a lot of fast food places and possibly hang out at a
bar after the show.

RWB

As others have observed, while a hobby can be a great stress reliever, it does not help if one obsesses about coins. Further, the large percentage of dealers and collectors who are fat, smoke and eat the stuff served at coin shows suggests shortened longevity for those who make a habit of attending a lot of shows. Lastly, with personal weight increases, it becomes increasingly likely that someone will collapse one of those wobbly chairs they have at shows and get skewered by a metal chair leg.

(…and I should talk!)

Maybe RYK or other physician-collectors should do an ANA seminar on How to Improve Your Health Through Coin Collecting…. I can bring “Asphalt Paving Annual” and other choice magazines for reading enjoyment.

Michigan

I know of one dealer at a paper money show who collapsed and died at their table years ago, I think he was in his 70s so age might
have been a bigger factor than bad eating habits, hard to tell. (thankfully I was not present when he died, just heard about it later).

ricko

A good method to combine healthy activity with coin collecting is to go out metal detectecting. Lots of walking and arm excersise. Added benefit of finding old coins.. now, there will be no MS70's... but the coins are free (relatively speaking - gear costs some money). Lots of fun.. meet interesting people.. get excersise.. get coins... wow.. Cheers, RickO

TwoSides2aCoin

<< <i>Present day coin collectors suffer from frustration due to a new disease called fundsarelow,cost too much and drooling excessively

The FBI has been on the prowl because of new mental illnesses concerning frustrated "Real Coin" collectors thinking of collecting "Modern Crap"

Do coin collectors live longer ?

Watch me and see

Stewart

It is all the fault of PCGS !!!!!!!!!! >>





Now I like that !

LeeBone

I hope.

UtahCoin

Unless they are shot and killed......

BigRed

I guess I should have said that if the person takes care of himself equally to other people ,would the reduced stress prolong life? I have heard that stress can kill as fast as smoking, excessive drinking, obesity or any of the other lifestyles. It would be hard for dealers to live a healthy lifestyle and eat right on the road but not impossible.

JRocco

Yup...Just take a look around you next time you are at a coin show.

mach19

<< <i>We would live longer

if the wives do not discover

how much money we spend on coins. >>






Shhhhh.... my honey is right behind me. P.S. that is my honey, Bear

Unknown

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Halfsense

Robert Hendershott, one of the founders of FUN, lived to be 104 and attended the ANA conventions until his final years.

On the other hand, I've heard that some middle-aged investors who ignorantly jumped into numismatic purchases were soon buried.....

-donn-

DJCoinz

Very interesting topic...

BECOKA

As long as I can keep up Friday Night Hockey I think coin collecting creates a nice balance and yes it drives me sometimes late into the early morning just reading and learning with no end in sight. I'll see your 100 years and raise you 10.

sbeverly

I just got back from the Ft. Lauderdale Coin Club meeting.
There were about 30 people in attendance.
3 of those were over 90 years old.

10%... not bad

OneFineCoin

well, well, well


I have been informed by my credit card companies that they will NOT allow me to die prematurely!

Mercfan

I'm sure we sport a higher-than-average incidence of eye-strain.


And our compulsion to collect probably stems from anal retentive tendencies that may also contribute to a higher-than-average rate of colorectal cancer.


And then there's the sedentary nature of our pastime. And the stress of always needing that one more date or upgrade. And the feeling of always wishing we had just a bit more cash for the next purchase. And the time spent inhaling the acetone fumes evaporating from the busy ends of Q-tips and the surfaces of little metal disks.

What's the best way to clean silver with cyanide again?

Oh, yeah. This hobby is the ticket to better health and longer life all right!

percyb

I'm still alive. That's the first step.

dogwood

Realone, thanks for that.

As for myself there are so many hobbies in my life, and I share the majority of them with my wife- save this one, curiously enough- that I am going to side with prevailing wisdom that after work is done some day, these many (often distracting) diversions are going to be the "stuff" of my final years and it will lead to purpose and advanced enjoyment and life expectancy. Then I often think of the day when I hobble on to the bourse floor, wife in tow, and sell the lot of my collection, then hand her a stack of cash. Ah the twinkle in her still eight years younger than me eyes.... It'll be a good afternoon.

BigRed

Realone, I can relate to that story. My Dad lived to 82 years old and that isn't bad but I think he could have lived longer and happier at the end. His wife (my stepmom) died about 4 years before him and he lived in one of those senior citizen apartments. He had absolutely nothing to do except wait on visits from us kids. We all visited him regularly but to be honest our visits were only a couple hours every week or so because the place was so doggone boring. I think some kind of hobby would have made him pass the time since he wasn't a big socializer and didn't like playing cards with the women that much. I sure know what I will be doing if I am in that situation when I get to be a senior citizen which by the way won't be that long.