Bushed but not dyed: meet the ‘new’ US president

In common with his British counterpart, Tony Blair, the president of the United States now cuts a distinctly less youthful appearance than at the beginning of his tenure.

The lines of his face are etched deeper, his hair is greyer and the resemblance to his father is more acute than ever.

Many political commentators speculate that the president looks more drawn, too, but this may be attributed to the fact that he rises early, runs four or five times a week and works out with weights as part of a regular exercise regime.

Other analysts, however, claim the rapid signs of age are directly attributed to the horror of 11 September and the pressure of leading his nation in the war on terror.

His predecessor, Bill Clinton, confessed that he preferred to comfort eat during stressful periods in office - but Mr Bush says he handles the stresses by exercising.

At the most recent evaluation, the president’s weight was 13.5st, down slightly from 13.8st during the 2000 presidential race.

Other statistics in a paper made available to the American media claim Mr Bush has worked his body fat "all the way down from 19.94 per cent to 14.5 per cent by the time of his last physical assessment in August".

The paper said that at that physical, Mr Bush’s doctors found he was in such great shape that he was in the top 2 per cent of men his age when it comes to cardiovascular fitness.

The president also enjoys boasting about his running times, reporting a personal best of three miles in an impressive six minutes, 45 seconds.

At the White House, Mr Bush runs on a treadmill to avoid the disruption and security risks that would be posed by pounding the streets. However, at his Texas ranch, he regularly runs in the open air.

Asked by journalists about the day’s physical exercise, he claimed he’d forgotten to turn on his watch. Then he quipped: "Feeble excuse for a slow run."

Mr Bush’s official height is 6ft 1in, but he jokingly once admitted to being a little shorter, at 5ft 11in.

The president isn’t always so healthy, however. He admits to loving bologna sandwiches and burgers, and shares a popular American penchant for peanut butter and jam sandwiches.

On a healthier note, the president enjoys raisin bran cereal in the morning. He also follows predecessor Benjamin Franklin’s advice of "early to bed, early to rise" - typically closing his eyes well before 11pm.

But don’t expect Mr Bush to dye his silver locks now or in the near future - he poked fun at rival Al Gore for allegedly tinting his hair [although Mr Gore insists he does not].

Mr Bush claims a man who dyes his hair cannot be trusted and "doesn’t know who he is ... has no soul".

Ronald Reagan would agree. He was acutely aware of his age and its possible repercussions in the US media when he came to office. "I [knew] I would turn 70 shortly after inauguration day and become the oldest president in history," Mr Reagan once recalled. "The truth is, I felt thirty-nine or younger. I didn’t feel any different or any older than the way I’d always felt. But I realised it was inevitable that the press would focus attention on my age. I’d never taken naps or dyed my hair, but that didn’t stop reporters from suggesting I did."