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Background: facing the costs of population ageing, many governments aim to keep older people in employment for longer. Summary health measures predict early retirement, but more specific symptoms and conditions need to be identified to guide efforts to delay retirement., Objective: to identify common symptoms and conditions that predict early work exit, at the population level., Design: cohort study of community dwelling respondents to the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing., Setting and Participants: a total of 1,693 workers aged 50 and over at baseline who were younger than the contemporaneous retirement age (60 for women, 65 for men) at 4-year follow-up., Results: a total of 308 (18.2%) individuals moved out of employment during the follow-up period. Advancing age, female gender, partner retirement, greater pension wealth, high alcohol consumption and fair or poor self-rated health were all associated with work exit. Accounting for these factors, reported difficulty walking a quarter mile was predictive of early work exit (odds ratio (OR) = 2.23; 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.42-3.52), especially where symptoms included lower limb pain and/or shortness of breath. Symptomatic depression (measured by Centre for Epidemiological Studies Depression scale) was also predictive of early work exit (OR = 1.52, CI 1.07, 2.18). About 50.8% of early retirees reported one or more of these specific health symptoms (depression, general pain, mobility limitations and leg pain when walking)., Conclusion: older workers who report depressive symptoms or impaired physical mobility, especially with lower limb pain and shortness of breath, are at increased risk of early transition out of work. Health interventions targeting these conditions may enable older workers to remain in the labour force.

Background: The baby-boom generation is entering retirement. Having experienced unprecedented prosperity and improved medical technology, they should be the healthiest generation ever., Methods: We compared prevalence of disease and risk factors at ages 50-61 years in baby boomers with the preceding generation and attributed differences to period or cohort effects. Data were from the Health Survey for England (HSE) from 1994 to 2007 (n = 48,563). Logistic regression models compared health status between birth cohorts. Age-period-cohort models identified cohort and period effects separately., Results: Compared to the wartime generation, the baby-boomer group was heavier (3.02 kg; 95% confidence interval [CI], 2.42-3.63; p < 0.001) and reported more diagnoses of hypertension (odds ratio [OR] = 1.48; CI, 1.27-1.72; p < 0.001), diabetes (OR = 1.71; CI, 1.37-2.12; p < 0.001), and mental illness (OR = 1.90; CI, 1.54-2.53; p < 0.001). Baby boomers reported fewer heart attacks (OR = 0.61; CI, 0.47-0.79; p < 0.001) and had lower measured blood pressures (systolic -9.51 mmHg; CI, -8.7 to -10.31; p <0.001; diastolic, -2.5 mmHg; CI, -1.99 to -3.01; p < 0.001). Higher diagnosed mental disorder prevalence was attributable to a cohort effect (prevalence for 1935-1939 cohort, 2.5%, vs.1950-1954 cohort, 4.7%), whereas changes in diagnoses of diabetes and hypertension and measured body mass index were primarily period effects., Conclusion: English baby boomers are moving toward retirement with improved cardiovascular health. However, the baby-boomer cohort has a higher prevalence of mental illness diagnoses and shows no improvement in self-rated health compared to the wartime birth cohort. There remains substantial scope to reduce health risks and future disability.

Background: Transitions such as retirement may represent points at which changes in health behaviour occur., Objective: To assess whether transition into retirement is associated with increased rates of smoking cessation., Design: Population-based prospective cohort study in England., Setting and Participants: One thousand seven hundred and twelve smokers aged 50 years and over, followed up for 5 to 6 years., Measurements: Work status (working/retired) and smoking status (non-smoker/smoker) at baseline and follow-up., Results: At baseline, 381 (22.2%) of our respondents had retired, 444 (25.9%) were working and remained in work at follow-up, and 167 (9.8%) transitioned from work to retirement. Seven hundred and twenty (42.1%) had some other status (e.g. unpaid work/unemployment). A total of 42.5% (95% CI 34.9-50.1) of those who retired quit smoking; for those remaining in employment this figure was 29.3% (95% CI 25.0-33.6), and for those already retired it was 30.2% (95% CI 25.5-34.9). In adjusted regression analyses, those aged 55-70 who retired were more than twice as likely (fully adjusted odds ratio 2.50 (95% CI 1.35-4.62)) to quit smoking as those who continued to work. Results were robust when those who retired for reasons of ill-health were excluded., Conclusions: Our results suggest individuals who undergo the transition into retirement are more likely to quit smoking than those who do not. Interventions should be developed to specifically target those who are retiring, or soon to retire, and those who are due to retire should be helped to incorporate smoking cessation into their retirement planning.