Working men suffer 80 per cent fewer heart attacks than retired men of the same age, a team of Harvard researchers concluded in a report published recently.

The researchers interviewed 1136 Florida wives, half widows whose husbands had died of heart attacks, and half wives whose husbands were still alive. Clinical Fellow in Medicine, Ward Casscells, who worked on the study, said "psychological stress" among retirees might be a contributing factor.

Stressing that the findings were only preliminary, Charles H. Henneken, assistant professor of Medicine, said he plans a more extensive study of the effects of "psycho-social" variables in producing heart attacks in elderly men. Coffee consumption, obesity, cigarette smoking, high blood pressure, prior heart disorder and high cholesterol counts are all common risk factors, Henneken added.

Horse's Mouth

The researchers interviewed wives because "they tend to know more about their husbands' health than he does," Casscells explained.

Retired people should stop smoking, exercise, and check their blood pressure regularly, Henneken recommended.

The research could be an important consideration in the debate over mandatory retirement at age 65, Casscells said.

Henneken said the results grew out of research he did five years ago, which linked smoking, overeating, and other "risk factors" to disease in white married males.