Health and work-related factors as predictors of still being active in working life at age 66 and 72 in a Swedish population: A longitudinal study.
Marie Bjuhr, Maria Engström, Anna-Karin Welmer and 2 others
PMID 37393472WHAT IT FOUND
Highly educated professionals and those with physically light jobs were more likely to still be working at 66.
Men were more likely to work until 72 than women. Having fewer diagnosed diseases also predicted continued work at 66.
Key findings
01Working in a profession requiring university education predicted still being active in working life at age 66 in both cohorts.
02Being a man predicted still being active in working life at age 72, even after adjusting for education and profession.
03Having a light level of physical activity at work predicted still being active in working life at age 66 in Cohort 2.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTsWhat it means for OTs
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What it does not show
The study only included people who were already working at age 60, so it excludes those who had already retired or were on sick leave, potentially skewing results toward healthier individuals. Being 'active in working life' was defined as working just one hour a week, which includes very part-time work and may not reflect full-time employment. The study could not account for financial incentives or pension specifics, which may strongly influence the decision to keep working. Results may not generalize outside Sweden due to specific pension reforms and cultural differences in working life.
Declared interests
The study was part of SNAC, commissioned by the Swedish Ministry of Health and Social Affairs. No specific conflicts of interest regarding commercial sponsors were declared in the provided text.
The easy way to misread this
Do not assume that improving a patient's general health status will automatically keep them in work longer. The study found that the type of job (high education, low physical demand) and gender were stronger predictors of continued work than the number of diagnosed diseases or self-reported health.