Madam, - One contributor to the Marian Finucane radio programme last Sunday said, tongue in cheek, that people taking early retirement at 55 were often dead by 65.
Studies show that the quality of retirement has a bearing on longevity. Retirement rich in social contact and physical and mental activity tends to add years to one's life.
On the other hand, ill-prepared and badly structured retirement can have the converse result. Some years ago a survey in France showed that half the bank clerks who retired at the normal age died within two years of leaving their employment. This extraordinary statistic was attributed to the absence of the positive factors mentioned above.
Undoubtedly the third age can be tinged with sorrows, but overall it can be an extremely pleasant period of our lives if we live wisely, mix with our peers and maintain a level of physical and mental activity consistent with our state of health. - Yours, etc,
EDDIE CASSIDY, Secretary,Eastern Region, Active Retirement, York Road, Rathmines, Dublin 6.