Not so sure we like that “sleeping giant” part: That’s what US Weekly editor called the over-40 demographic this week,
as he explained the predominance of over-40 models in major magazines
(if not, alas, on the Fashion Week waif parades): These are the women
at the hub of our culture.”

The women who invented the supermodel
phenomenon are back in the spotlight after leaving to have children and
pursue other interests. They have eclipsed their teenage rivals to
helm this season’s most coveted collections. Linda Evangelista, 43 [above] is
the face of Prada; Claudia Schiffer, left is fronting Chanel’s main
collection …. And they are not the only ones.

“Women
aren’t as afraid to grow older,” Lee said. “It’s about retaining their
femininity and owning it in a way that’s not desperate, like, ‘I’m a
42-year-old woman who wants to look like 18. I can still go get my hair
blown out and buy some nice makeup and go to yoga and Pilates classes.
Before it was either give up and put on some high-waisted mom jeans and
drive a minivan or try to stay forever young wearing dresses with a hem
too high and a bust too low and become the mom everybody whispers
about. Now there’s a middle path.”

But it’s so popular: British researchers this week confirmed doubts about the benefits of arthroscopic knee surgery, of interest to many of us facing unexpected stress from aging joints:

Running from 1999 to 2007, the study treated 178 London-area men and women with an average age of 60. All study participants received physical therapy as well as medications such as ibuprofen or acetaminophen, but 86 of the patients also received surgery consisting of lavage and arthroscopic debridement at LHSC. At several time intervals post-treatment, the researchers found both patient groups experienced comparable improvements in joint pain, stiffness, and function, but surgery provided no additional benefit.

Orthopedic surgeon and study co-author Dr. Bob Litchfield emphasizes this study addresses only arthritis-related knee problems. “Although this study did not show a significant therapeutic benefit of arthroscopic debridement in this patient population, knee arthroscopy is still beneficial in many other conditions affecting the knee, such as meniscal repair and resection, and ligament reconstruction.” Litchfield is the Medical Director of the Fowler Kennedy Sport Medicine Clinic. He’s also a professor In the Department of Surgery at Western’s Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry and a scientist with the Lawson Health Research Institute. “As surgeons, we need to know when things are working and when they’re not. If this particular technique is not working for this subgroup of patients, we better come up with something else that does.”

A 2002 study demonstrating similar results to this study was broadly dismissed by the medical community, and arthroscopic surgery of the knee remains a common treatment for joint pain and stiffness. But in this latest study the researchers conclude “based on the available evidence, we believe that the resources currently allocated towards arthroscopic surgery for osteoarthritis would be better directed elsewhere.”

Pay a living wage, and I’m there: If you’ve ever considered teaching as  a second career but  balked at slim salaries offered by most school systems, you’re not alone- and things could be about to change. A new study shows that given a $50K starting salary and thorough training, many more people would be interested in taking on the challenge — most of them women 50-60:

Career changers may be one of the nation’s best hopes to fill an anticipated 1.5 million teaching vacancies over the next decade, according to a new national survey released today by the Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Foundation and funded by MetLife Foundation.

The survey, Teaching as a Second Career, finds that 42 percent of college-educated Americans aged 24 to 60 would consider becoming a teacher….Findings [also] indicate that more people would consider teaching as a second
career if starting salaries were raised to $50,000 and if career
changers could receive quality training and support.

Nearly half of all the potential teachers among the respondents—most of whom are women and between 50 and 60—say they are considering teaching in the next five years. Fully three-fourths of this group had considered teaching in the past, suggesting that this group is the “low-hanging fruit? most ripe for recruitment into the field.