Retired people have a lower risk of developing heart disease than working people, according to a study by a group of Kyoto University and other researchers.
The study was published in a journal of the International Epidemiological Association on May 8.
Since the 1990s, the research group has monitored the health of a total of 106,922 people in their 50s to 70s in 35 countries, including Japan and other Asian countries as well as European countries and the United States, for an average of six years and seven months per person.
The study found that the risk of developing heart disease was 2.2 percentage points lower for retired people than for working people.
The proportion of people who did not get enough exercise was 3.0 points lower among retired people than among working people.
Among sedentary workers, the rates of heart disease, obesity and physical inactivity dropped after retirement.
Meanwhile, people who mainly engaged in physical labor tended to become obese after retirement.
The study used the method of instrumental variables to eliminate the tendency of people with poor health to retire early.
Koryu Sato, an assistant professor at Kyoto University's Graduate School of Medicine, said that one of the factors behind the lower heart disease risk for retired people is likely that people do more exercise after retirement.
"For people who continue to work, it's important to consciously make time to exercise," Sato said.