Can a Healthy Lifestyle Prevent Disability Pension among Female Healthcare Workers with Good and Poor Self-Rated Health? Prospective Cohort Study with 11-Year Register Follow-Up.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH AND PUBLIC HEALTH 2022;
19:10631. [PMID:
36078347 PMCID:
PMC9518454 DOI:
10.3390/ijerph191710631]
[Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/22/2022] [Revised: 08/18/2022] [Accepted: 08/24/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND
Our purpose was to investigate whether healthy lifestyle habits prevent disability pension among female healthcare workers.
METHODS
We conducted a prospective cohort study with an 11-year register follow-up in which 8159 female healthcare workers from Denmark completed a questionnaire concerning self-rated health, work environment, leisure-time physical activity (LTPA), smoking, and body mass index (BMI). Data on disability benefit payments were obtained from the Danish Register for Evaluation of Marginalization during an 11-year follow-up. Potential confounders included age, occupational education, psychosocial work factors, and physical exertion during work.
RESULTS
Among workers in good health at baseline, smoking, obesity, and low levels of LTPA were risk factors for disability pension during 11-year follow-up. Among workers with poor health, only low levels of physical activity were a risk factor for disability pension.
CONCLUSIONS
This underscores the importance of a healthy lifestyle, specially being physically active, for preventing premature exit from the labor market in female healthcare workers.
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