Midlife Crisis: It's Not a Psychological Issue, It's a Key Segment of the Economy

A thoroughly unscientific poll of middle-aged British men found that they spend US$48 billion a year alleviating their midlife crises.

That's about US$6,000 / year for every man too old to love popular music and too young to access the retirement fund.

Some of the most expensive coping mechanisms tallied by Ciao Surveys: exotic vacations, cosmetic enhancements, and a somewhat unbelievable $1,400 average spent on Viagra and sex aids.

It's unclear whether Ciao actually asked whether those surveyed felt they were going through a midlife crisis, or if they simply extrapolated all vacation spending by middle aged men.

Keeping our tongue firmly in cheek, our post "Middle Age By The Numbers" adds a few more items to the list:

- There's about US$1b spent on male pattern baldness cures in the US every year (that would be about $200m in the UK);

- 36,000 Corvettes were sold in the US in 2006 -- perhaps US$2.7b at retail (is the UK equivalent the ... Mini?);

- The most popular concert tours? Acts that may have already had their midlife crisis: The Rolling Stones, Madonna, Bon Jovi, and U2. In the case of the Stones, they just may not remember it.

Not included in either tally: Harley Davidson sales. That's odd, since the Ciao survey was released in conjunction with the DVD release of midlife-crisis-and-motorcycles movie "Wild Hogs."