Divorce taking deadly toll on senior men

"........ Women are almost always the instigators of divorce in middle-aged couples. There are many housewives who wait until their husbands have received their retirement pay before they ask for a divorce. At the moment, there are loads of these women just waiting for their husbands to retire," Divorce consultant Hiromi Ikeuchi tells Shukan Post......."


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Divorce taking deadly toll on senior men


Divorce in middle-age cuts a decade off a man's life, according to Shukan Post (10/28), which adds that Japan is bracing itself for a wave of split marriages when baby boomers start retiring in a couple of years.

Japan's divorce rate peaked in 2002, when 289,838 couples untied the knot, and though the rate has declined marginally ever since, splitting up appears to have fatal consequences for the country's men.

Japan's "2007 Problem" sees baby boomers turn 60 and start retiring, causing a decrease in the workforce and tax revenue and increase in demands on the taxpayers to pay for old age pensions. It could also spark an increase in deadly divorces.

"Women are almost always the instigators of divorce in middle-aged couples. There are many housewives who wait until their husbands have received their retirement pay before they ask for a divorce. At the moment, there are loads of these women just waiting for their husbands to retire," Divorce consultant Hiromi Ikeuchi tells Shukan Post.

Right now, housewives who've never done a day's paid work can still claim an old age pension. Even if they divorce in middle or old age, the government will pay them a basic pension regardless of the terms of their divorce.

But in 2007, the system will change. Women will be able to receive up to half of the husband's entitlements, which for most salarymen are significantly higher than the basic pension. And the government will ensure payments are made to both parties. This makes it much easier for older women to divorce their husbands, but it's killing older Japanese men, according to the weekly.

The National Institute of Population and Social Security Research says that divorce shortens the lives of middle-aged or old men.

"Our institute calculates the average life spans of four types of people those with spouses, the unmarried, those whose spouses have died and those who live alone after divorce," the institute's Ryusaburo Sato tells Shukan Post. "Those who are alone following a divorce have the shortest life spans of all."

The Institute took a group of 50-year-olds and calculated how much longer they had to live. The divorced had an average of 20.85 years compared to the 29.61 years people could be expected to live on average if they had a spouse.

"Over the past 40 years, the average remaining lifespan for those aged 50 has increased by 6 years for those who are married, but only half that length for any man who doesn't have a wife," Sato says. "Divorce is clearly the reason for this disparity."

It's easy to see why men drop off after divorcing. Tsuguya Araki, a spokesman for the Family Counseling Service, elaborates.

"Women tend to have a well-balanced, nutritious diet. Guys, though, when left alone are more inclined to eat what they like and in large quantities. They also tend to drink more, often through loneliness brought on by the end of their marriage. This can create problems with internal organs like the liver," he tells Shukan Shincho. "Many older men go into depression following a divorce. This can lead to suicide. Even mild depression can prompt them to stop looking after themselves and invite all sorts of other problems."

Araki continues: "It's hard for men who divorce in middle age to find a new partner. Often, they have to pay alimony and struggle financially. Eventually, they stop caring for themselves. For women, though, a divorce can be liberating and open new doors for them, giving them a new zest for life."

Divorce expert Ikeuchi says the solution's often simple.

"Most of the men who come to see me when a divorce is on the cards are the types of guys who'd barely notice whether their wives' hairstyles had changed. This sort of thing hurts women, so the first piece of advice I give is that it's important to take a good look at your wife. You should express your love by calling her by name or giving her a cuddle," Ikeuchi tells Shukan Post. "Love really only lasts about four years at most. After that, how well a couple gets on depends on how much effort they're prepared to put in." (By Ryann Connell)

October 21, 2005

WaiWai stories are transcriptions of articles that originally appeared in Japanese language publications. The Mainichi Daily News cannot be held responsible for the contents of the original articles, nor does it guarantee their accuracy. Views expressed in the WaiWai column are not necessarily those held by the Mainichi Daily News or Mainichi Newspapers Co.
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