Retiring from work 'is good for your health'

[annie]

We all knew this already, but the govt, keep raising the retirement age , so we work until we drop - I fear for our children!!
What do you think?

Retiring from work is good for your health, chiefly due to the benefits of more exercise, less stress, and greater sleep enjoyed by people who stop working, according to a major study being presented tomorrow.

The new research, by Dr Peter Eibich, a health economist at the University of Oxford, reveals that pensioners use their spare time to stay active and healthy.

But Britons wanting to reap the health benefits of retirement face waiting longer than ever before - for the state pension age will rise to 66 in five years’ time, and to 67 by 2028.

The findings, being announced to delegates at the European Economic Association’s annual congress in Mannheim, Germany, tomorrow, draw on data of more than 10,000 households in the German Socio-Economic Panel Study.

In retirement, people are more likely to rate their health as ‘satisfactory’ and their mental health improves, according to the study, which will be published in the Journal of Health Economics next month.

More sleep, with people getting an extra 40 minutes a day in their retirement, along with pensioners being 10 per cent more likely to take regular exercise, are key factors in this. And retired people visit their doctor less often, even after allowing for age-related medical problems and those retired early due to ill-health. “Taking these factors into account, I find that the number of doctor visits is reduced by 25% for retirees compared to non-retirees of the same age,” said Dr Eibich.

“Relief from work-related stress and strain, increased sleep duration as well as more frequent physical exercise seem to be key mechanisms through which retirement affects health,” he states in his paper.

“Retirement also increases time invested in repairs and gardening, and household chores. These activities require a physical effort, and can therefore be expected to enhance health by providing physical activity over and above the increase in sports and exercise,” adds Dr Eibich.

But lengthening waits to get state pensions mean that older workers should make lifestyle changes before retiring, according to the researcher.

“These findings suggest that in times of increasing retirement ages policy makers should consider incentives for older workers to adjust their health behavior, e.g. through part-time work or partial retirement programs,” he concludes.

Commenting on the findings, Caroline Abrahams, charity director, Age UK said: “If you hate your job and can't wait to retire and then you use your extra time in retirement to get and stay fit, you may very well become a lot healthier than you were when you were working. But equally, some people enjoy their jobs and become miserable and depressed when they stop, so their health and wellbeing may get worse rather than better.”
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/ho ... 70001.html

[maureenho]

The way I see it is they keep raising the retirement age to kill us off sooner so they don't have to fork out state pensions.

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[Rosalind]

go90 tha22222