The association of agricultural and non-agricultural work on the healthy ageing of older adults in Japan: A 6-year longitudinal study from the Japan Gerontological evaluation study

Objectives: Many studies have examined the impact of employment on health, but few large-scale longitudinal studies specifically investigate the impact of agricultural labor on the health of older adults. This study aims to identify the health effects of employment on older Japanese adults, focusing on agricultural workers.

Methods: This study uses longitudinal data collected by the Japan Gerontological Evaluation Study (JAGES) from 2013 to 2019. We selected 48,221 older adults out of a total of 65,751 respondents, excluding missing values. The objective variables included healthy ageing, such as dementia, functional disability, loss of healthy life expectancy, and death. Explanatory variables were used to categorize participants into four groups: non-agricultural workers, agricultural workers, retired, and those who have never worked. Seven adjustment variables, including sex, age, and socioeconomic status, were considered. Logistic and modified Poisson regression analyses were employed after imputing missing values.

Results: Incidence ranged from 2.6 % (dementia) to 17.3 % (any level of functional disability). Post-multiple imputation analysis showed significantly lower odds ratios and risk ratios for dementia, functional disability, loss of healthy life expectancy, and death among non-agricultural and agricultural workers compared to retirees. The odds and risk ratios for agricultural workers ranged from 0.45 (dementia) to 0.69 (loss of healthy life expectancy).

Conclusions: Compared with retirees, non-agricultural and agricultural workers experience significantly reduced risks for dementia, functional disability, loss of healthy life expectancy, and death. These findings showed potential health benefits associated with continued employment in older age.