Objective To analyze the influence of Internet use on the physical and mental health of older empty nesters and to provide a reference for improving their health status.

Methods Data on 3 970 empty nesters (living alone or only with spouse/cohabitant for at least 180 days in the past year) aged 60 years and older were extracted from a survey of the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (CHARLS) in 2020. Physical and mental health were assessed in the 2020 survey using the Basic Activities of Daily Living Scale (BADL) and the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (CESD-10), respectively. From all participants, 638 Internet users (observation group) were matched with the same number of non-Internet users (control group) using 1:1 propensity score matching (PSM). Univariate and multiple linear regression analyses were used to examine the influence of Internet use on the physical and mental health of the older empty nesters.

Results Of the 3 970 participants, 19.75% reported Internet use. Before the PSM, there were statistically significant differences in the covariates between the observation and control groups (P<0.05 for all), but after the PSM, the between-group differences in the covariates were not statistically significant (all P>0.05). Multivariate linear regression analysis showed that Internet use was positively associated with the physical health (β=0.289, P<0.05) and mental health (β=1.024, P<0.05) of older empty nesters. In addition, physical health was also influenced by gender, age, social participation, and nighttime sleep duration (all P<0.05), while mental health was also influenced by gender, household registration type, education, alcohol consumption, and nighttime sleep duration (P<0.05). Among these factors, social participation and nighttime sleep duration had the greatest influence on physical health (β= –0.411, P<0.05) and mental health (β=2.235, P<0.05).

Conclusions The Internet usage rate among China's elderly empty nesters is relatively low. Internet use can effectively improve the physical and mental health of this population. Social participation and nighttime sleep duration are important factors influencing the physical and mental health of elderly empty nesters.