Retirement: Late retirement is detrimental to mental health
Created: 08/02/2022, 02:00 p.m
By: Judith Brown
Those who retire earlier usually have better mental fitness.
This is the result of a study by the RWI Leibniz Institute.
Having more time for the family, finally being able to pursue your personal hobbies and doing something for your health: This is how many people would like to spend their retirement.
After all, the stress and some physical strain that some professions previously entailed are finally eliminated.
The most recent discussion about raising the retirement age to 70, for example, caused dissatisfaction among economists.
However, researchers have found that retirement itself is not always good for health, and can even be detrimental.
Mental fitness in particular is said to suffer as a result.
Retirement: Retirement ages mentally faster
According to a study by the RWI Leibniz Institute, whether people age faster mentally depends on the retirement age.
(symbol photo) © Maskot/IMAGO
The idea of finally being able to enjoy life in retirement - this dream does not come true for many people.
For them, entering retirement means "a severe turning point and a real risk to their health," explains biochemist and science journalist Dr.
Christine Berndt in a video column in the
Süddeutsche Zeitung
.
Some retirees suddenly feel useless when they retire and are confronted with feelings of loneliness, which can also have their roots in childhood.
Because not only the tasks of the job and the structures in everyday life are lost, but often also the social contacts.
According to a study by the RWI - Leibniz Institute, retirement has different effects on people's health.
The researchers evaluated surveys of almost 100,000 people from 18 industrialized countries.
However, the results of a word memory test showed that retirement has a negative effect on cognitive abilities in old age on average.
According to this, the normal cognitive decline that happens to people between the ages of 60 and 70 doubles again in retirement.
However, there were differences with regard to the point in time when people entered retirement, i.e. the retirement age, which can be lowered due to illness or disability.
You can find even more exciting health topics in the free 24vita newsletter, which you can subscribe to right here.
Retirement has a negative impact on health when people retire later
The scientists could not find any significant cognitive losses in people who retired as early as possible.
The situation was different for people who, like most employees, did not retire until the age of 64 or 65: They mentally deteriorated more quickly as a result of retirement.
They lost 20 percent of their mental fitness the longer they waited to retire.
also read
Intermittent fasting: lose weight with the 16:8 diet - fitness expert reveals how to lose five kilos a week
Do you sleep badly?
Which common mistakes rob you of sleep – the pillow has to fit too
For the scientists, this difference could be related to the fact that people who retired earlier and longed for it are more active in their private lives and mostly also pursue hobbies.
These living conditions may also promote mental fitness and they therefore do not suffer any losses here.
Their jobs may have been less challenging and uninteresting compared to other workers.
For most people, however, retirement has negative effects on cognitive abilities.
They age faster mentally, probably because their job put more mental strain on them.
A simple cognitive memory test can show whether there is a fundamental risk of senile dementia or Alzheimer's.
These nine myths are floating around about retirement
View photo gallery
This article only contains general information on the respective health topic and is therefore not intended for self-diagnosis, treatment or medication. In no way does it replace a visit to the doctor. Unfortunately, our editors are not allowed to answer individual questions about clinical pictures.
