Despite the importance of sleep, more is needed to know about how retirement can affect sleeping habits. Most studies have used self-reported questionnaires to examine the effects of retiring from a full-time job.
Nevertheless, the relationship between sleep and retirement is complex, and several potential contributing factors exist. For example, financial stress, depression, or the loss of loved ones are all possible causes of insomnia. In addition, physical conditions such as pain or illness may cause early morning awakenings and interfere with sleep. In addition, medications that are often prescribed for chronic conditions can affect sleep patterns, especially in older individuals.
Sleep is a crucial aspect of health and well-being. It is also a critical factor in workability and is strongly related to employment. A sufficient amount of sleep is necessary for healthy and productive daily living, and inadequate sleep is correlated with lower job performance and productivity, sickness absence, and accidents.
Historical analysis compared the outcomes at the end of retirement with their pre-retirement scores. They found significant changes in sleeping patterns between the two periods, with more sleep accumulated in retirement and better quality of sleep recorded.
While the information on the association between retirement and sleeping duration and quality is limited, several studies indicate that sleep improves significantly after retiring from a full-time job. These improvements are mainly attributed to the removal of work-related stressors and the increased flexibility in time use.
If this is the case, sleeping after retirement could be improved by removing work-related stressors and increasing work-time flexibility. Such improvements could be further boosted by implementing workplace policies that support good sleep habits.
This would be a significant step forward to further promote the development of a long and productive life by supporting the work ability of older workers and by prolonging their labor force participation until their retirement age.
