Retirement and weight stability: Panel evidence from Australia

Retirement is a major lifestyle change that can lead to shifts in body weight, with potential health consequences for older adults. This paper examines the causal effect of retirement on body weight using Australian panel data and an instrument based on Age Pension eligibility. In contrast to much of the existing literature, we find little evidence that retirement significantly affects body weight among older Australians, even over longer retirement durations. To explain this null effect, we investigate changes in health-related behaviors. While retirees reduce work-related physical activity, they compensate by increasing moderate leisure-time exercise. Dietary patterns remain largely unchanged. These behavioral adjustments help maintain pre-retirement body weight. Our findings suggest that, in the context of a developed welfare state like Australia, retirement may not disrupt weight-related habits. By identifying the behavioral mechanisms underlying this stability, the study contributes to a more nuanced understanding of how retirement shapes later-life weight outcomes.