Dementia and Alzheimer ’s are growing problem in many westerly nations as people are living longer . While a treatment for these cognitive conditions still evades detection , there are certain behaviors and life-style choices that are known to exacerbate the issue . It now seems that retirement might be one of them .
A newfangled discipline carry out by researchersover at University College Londonhas found that those search forward to an former retirement might want to take stock of what they will be fill their new - chance time with . As masses stop working , their cognitive function start to pass up quickly , most likely as a effect of the sudden surcease of steady genial stimulation .
The study was carry out as part of the university ’s prospicient - terminus health investigation call the Whitehall II Study . It has been tracking 3,433 civil servant over a flow of 30 years . For the 14 eld running up to retirement , and then another 14 years later , the research worker have been on a regular basis test the player using a range of examinations , include memory assessments , allowing them to track how different events are affecting them .
And it seems that retreat is a significant hit on people ’s genial health . The researchers found that when people did finally retire , they experienced cognitive decay in their verbal memory 38 percentage faster than before they contain working . Publishing their results in theEuropean Journal of Epidemiology , they resolve that the deed of retirement significantly accelerates cognitive decline .
“ It make it more likely that dementia will sic in earlier , ” Professor Cary Cooper , an expert in organizational psychology , toldThe Telegraph . “ We know the more cognitively active you are the more it offsets the risk of dementia . I ’m not talking about doing Sudoku but doing something completely different from your line – so if you worked in the civil service all your life , why not go and avail out in a infirmary or teach ?
“ The most important thing is to interact with masses . ”
Interestingly , while the horizontal surface of work that people were set about slowed the decline during utilization – possibly reflecting how mentally demanding the job was – in retreat this made no remainder . multitude from all paygrades saw the same abrupt mental descent when they barricade .
Basically , the researchers accent how important it is to continue set about mentally stimulating activities to alleviate the increase in rate of cognitive decline that can happen after retirement .
