The dynamic impact of retirement on health: Evidence from a nationwide ten-year panel survey in Japan

•Retirement affects the level of health and the pace of its subsequent change.•Dynamic effects of retirement differ by types of health and health behavior.•Retirement affects men's health more than women's.

Retirement is a major life-course transition that is closely related to changes in health. This study examined the dynamic impact of retirement on health and health behaviors, distinguishing an immediate change in the level of health at retirement and a change in the rate of change after retirement. We used panel data from 9283 individuals (4441 men and 4842 women) who had retired during a nationwide ten-year panel survey in Japan conducted in 2005-2014. We focused on three health behaviors (current smoking, heavy alcohol drinking, and leisure-time physical activity) and two health indicators (self-rated health and psychological distress). We estimated regression models that controlled for both time-invariant individual attributes and the endogeneity of retirement, using panel data collected during the five years before and after retirement. Results generally confirmed that the transition was accompanied by favorable changes in health and health behaviors with some gender differences. Among men, retirement immediately promoted leisure-time physical activity and reduced poor self-rated health and psychological distress. Retirement also accelerated smoking cessation and leisure-time physical activity and decelerated reporting poor health. Among women, retirement immediately promoted leisure-time physical activity and reduced psychological distress, while it did not affect the rate of change in any health variable after retirement. The current study underscores the need for more in-depth knowledge of the dynamic impact of retirement on health. This will assist in developing policy measures to help the middle-aged population make healthy transitions from work to retirement.