Retirement 'harmful to health', study says

Retirement 'harmful to health', study says

Retirement can cause a drastic decline in health, according to a study released today.Research found that both mental and physical health can suffer, said the Institute of Economic Affairs and the Age Endeavour Fellowship, The study - Work Longer, Live Healthier: The Relationship Between Economic Activity, Health And Government Policy - shows there is a small boost in health immediately after retirement but that, over the longer term, there is a significant deterioration.

The study, published by the Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA), London, a think tank, found that retirement results in a "drastic decline in health" in the medium and long term.The IEA said the study suggests people should work for longer for health as well as economic reasons.The study, which was published in conjunction with the ‘’Age Endeavour Fellowship’’, a charity, compared retired people with those who had continued working past retirement age, and took into account possible confounding factors.

Working longer will not only be an economic necessity, it also helps people live healthier lives,The study suggests there is a small boost to health immediately after retirement, before a significant decline in the longer term.Retirement is found to increase the chances of suffering from clinical depression by 40%, while you are 60% more likely to suffer from a physical condition. The probability of taking medication for such a condition rises by about 60 per cent as well, according to the findings. People who are retired are 40 per cent less likely than others to describe themselves as being in very good or excellent health.The length of time spent in retirement can also cause further disadvantages, the study found.

It suggests retirement increases the likelihood of suffering from clinical depression by 40 per cent and the chance of having at least one diagnosed physical condition by about 60 per centIt concluded that, for men and women alike, "there seem to exist longer-term health benefits of employment among older people".The effect is the same for men and women, while the chances of becoming ill appear to increase with the length of time spent in retirement.

Its study said: "This, in turn, indicates that politicians do not face a trade-off between improving the health of the older population, increasing economic growth, decreasing health spending among the elderly and producing solvent pension systems.
"The policy implication is that impediments to continuing paid word in old age should be decreased. This does not necessarily mean that people should be expected to work full-time until they die, but rather that public policy should remove the strong financial incentives to retire at earlier ages."
Philip Booth, editorial and programme director at the Institute of Economic Affairs, of England said: "Over several decades, governments have failed to deal with the 'demographic time bomb'. He said further,"There is now general agreement that state pension ages should be raised. The Government should take firmer action here and also deregulate labour markets. Working longer will not only be an economic necessity, it also helps people to live healthier lives."