Awesome News About Aging and Body Image

Here's something to look forward to: You're more likely to be happy with your looks as you get older.

A recent Gallup-Healthways survey of more than 80,000 Americans found that people aged 65 or older were most likely to say that they always felt good about their appearance .

In the survey, 66% of American seniors gave the two highest possible responses to feeling good about their looks (either a 4 or a 5 on a 5-point scale), compared to 61% of young adults aged 18 to 34 and 54% of 35-to-64-year-olds. The average across all age groups was 58%. So, yes, while middle-aged folks experienced a dip in satisfaction with their looks, it does seem to rebound later.

That feeling of confidence varied between the sexes, too. The survey found, somewhat unsurprisingly, that men are more likely than women to feel good about their appearance at nearly every age level. The only time when women felt more confident was at 85+.

Here's some healthy perspective from Gallup: “Older Americans' looks are generally out of sync with the youthful standard of beauty that prevails in American culture, and yet they are most happy with what they see in the mirror.” Translation: as you get older, you're less likely to give a hoot, which could help you be at peace with yourself.

In the meantime, if you're not feeling as confident as you used to be, try these 7 strategies to love the way you look .