Associations between transition to retirement and changes in dietary intakes in French adults (NutriNet-Santé cohort study)

Abstract

BackgroundFew studies have focused on the influence of retirement on dietary behaviors. Our study aimed at assessing the associations between transition to retirement and changes in dietary intake in French adults, particularly according to spousal retirement and baseline income.MethodsThis prospective study included 577 French participants from the NutriNet-Santé cohort who retired over a 5-year follow-up (2009–2014 or 2010–2015). At baseline and every year, dietary intakes were assessed using 24 h records. Repeated measures of dietary intake were analysed using mixed models adjusted for energy with random effects of time and period (before and after retirement) to assess changes following retirement for each gender.ResultsAfter retirement, intakes of saturated fatty acids and sodium increased in both genders. Women showed specific changes after retirement: decrease in the score of adherence to recommendations and in intakes of fruits, proteins, vitamins; increase in intakes of fatty sweet products. In men with the lowest income at baseline, specific changes in intake were associated with retirement such as decrease in intake of dairy products and increase in intake of lipids.ConclusionsTransition to retirement was associated with unhealthier dietary intakes. These results may help defining interventions during this vulnerable life-period.Trial registrationThis study was conducted according to guidelines laid down in the Declaration of Helsinki and all procedures were approved by the Institutional Review Board of the French Institute for Health and Medical Research (IRB Inserm No. 0000388FWA00005831) and the French Data Protection Authority (Commission Nationale Informatique et Libertés No. 908450 and No. 909216). Electronic informed consents were obtained from all participants.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12966-017-0527-6) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

The Impact of Retirement on Cardiovascular Disease and Its Risk Factors: A Systematic Review of Longitudinal Studies

“…A French study found that transition to retirement was associated with unhealthier dietary intakes such as a decrease in intake of fruits, proteins, and some vitamins as well as an increase in intakes of fatty and sweet products, saturated fatty acids, and sodium. Changes of dietary intakes with retirement were particularly marked in men with the lowest income at baseline ( Hassen et al, 2017 ). Another French longitudinal study reported that the amount of dietary nutrients consumed remained the same before and after retirement ( Lauque, Nourashemi, Soleilhavoup, Guyonnet, & Bertiere, 1998 ).…”

Changes in fruit, vegetable and fish consumption after statutory retirement: a prospective cohort study

“…Some studies have found an association between retirement and a change to unhealthier food habits. A French prospective study found that transition to retirement was associated with a decrease in fruit consumption and overall unhealthier dietary intakes (27) . Other studies have found positive changes, such as an increased consumption of vegetables after retirement in a French prospective cohort study (28) .…”

Retirement is associated with a decrease in dietary quality

“…People who retire tend to decrease their food expenditures [5], while increasing cooking time [6]. The decrease in food expenditures leads to a higher intake of unhealthier, cheaper foods [7]. Thus, retirement has been considered as a risk factor for weight gain [8] but also for malnutrition [9].…”

“…Still, the impact of retirement on diet is unclear. Retirement has been associated with an improvement [11,12] or a worsening [7] on diet. Similarly, most reviews on the effect of retirement on diet failed to provide a definite conclusion [1,13,14].…”

“…A recent study [15] reported that retirement could lead both to favourable and unfavourable changes in diet, and concluded that more high-quality, longitudinal research was needed. Further, many studies assessing the impact of retirement on diet focused on specific foods such as fish [16], vegetables [12], fruits and vegetables [17] or alcohol [18], while the number of studies assessing dietary intake as a whole is small [7,19].…”