Old nudists struggling to recruit nakedness-averse millennials

Ryan Campbell holds a sign at a nudist rally on Saturday, Sept. 26, 2015 in San Francisco, Calif. Nudists hold a nude-in at Jane Warner Plaza in the Castro after a San Francisco judge ruled the city had to issue them a permit. less Ryan Campbell holds a sign at a nudist rally on Saturday, Sept. 26, 2015 in San Francisco, Calif. Nudists hold a nude-in at Jane Warner Plaza in the Castro after a San Francisco judge ruled the city had to ... more Photo: Nathaniel Y. Downes, The Chronicle Buy photo Photo: Nathaniel Y. Downes, The Chronicle Image 1 of / 15 Caption Close Old nudists struggling to recruit nakedness-averse millennials 1 / 15 Back to Gallery

Nudist baby boomers are struggling to recruit young people to join their liberated cause, according to an article in a Canadian publication.

CBC News reports that nudists at Van Tan Club in North Vancouver are scratching their heads trying to figure out how to lure in millennials.

"It's an older group, and I don't know why, but it tends to stay an older group," nudist Linda Kent, 65, told CBC News. "People who join tend to be older."

One club member suspects that "social and body image pressures" are deterring young folks, who are more self-conscious about their naked selves.

The naturist movement has been dealing with declining membership for some time. In 2007, the American Association for Nude Recreation estimated that 90-percent of its 50,000 members were over the age of 35. Many nudist colonies have tried marketing specifically to 18-35 year olds, but their numbers are still faltering.

An article in Tan, an Australian naturist magazine, speculates that Gen X and Yers don't like "formal, group activities" and are afraid of being outed as nudists on social media.

But most importantly, a lack of young people has caused a real manpower crisis in nudist colonies.

"It would be nice to have younger members because we're getting too old to do the physical work," Kent said. "Somebody's gotta do it."