Retirement is not associated with age-related cognitive impairment in Korean adults

The literature provides conflicting evidence as to whether retirement may harm cognition. This study aimed to determine the relationship between retirement and cognitive impairment in Korean adults.

This study was performed using biennial data collected during the Korean Longitudinal Study of Ageing survey between 2006 and 2018. A total of 6363 adults aged 45 years or older with normal cognition were followed for up to 12 years. Linear regression, adjusted for potential covariates, was used to examine the association between retirement and cognitive impairment.

Retirees composed 27.6% of participants were older, and had several cohort-related features such as a lower education level and income. They were more likely to be single and to participate in religious activities, and had better healthy habits, but participated in fewer social activities and were more likely to have a depressive mood. Unadjusted models indicated that retirees were at higher risk of cognitive impairment, but this association became nonsignificant in age-adjusted models. Multivariate regression analysis identified several risk factors associated with cognitive impairment, but these did not include retirement.

Retirement was not associated with cognitive impairment in Korean adults.