Workaholics beware!

Do you spend more time at work than at home? This might affect you more badly than you think! Working for 35-40 hours/week is considered the standard for most people. However, a recent study found that working for excessively long hours can lead to increase in heart disease and stroke risk.
Researchers analysed data from 6,03,838 individuals who were free from heart disease and stroke at the beginning of the study.They were followed for an average of 7.2 to 8.5 yrs to check for occurrence of heart disease or stroke and a correlation was made with the number of working hours.
Results showed that individuals who worked for 55 hours/week or more had 13% increased risk for heart disease as compared to those working for standard hours (i.e. 35-40 hours/week). The risk for stroke in the group who worked for greater than or equal to 55 hours/week was much higher at 33%.
Interestingly, for stroke, the researchers found that working even slightly more than normal hours can have a negative effect. Working for 41-48, 49-54 and more than 55 hours/week increased stroke risk by 10%, 27% and 33% respectively.
The study confirmed that the likelihood of stroke increases substantially with increase in working hours. What could be reasons for this phenomenon? Firstly, long working hours may trigger the stress response of the body leading to sudden stroke. Secondly, working late involves long hours of physical inactivity and might lead to negative behaviour like excessive alcohol consumption which in turn might increase stroke risk. Last but not the least, these individuals are more likely to ignore disease symptoms leading to sudden occurrence of events. More attention should thus be paid to the health of those individuals working for long hours.
So if you are a workaholic, get regular check-ups done to avoid unpleasant surprises! On the other hand, working for the normal 35-40 hours/week might be a safer option.
Ref:1. Kivimäki M. Lancet. 2015; (published online Aug 20.)http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(15)60295-1
The article has been contributed by:Dr. Ashish S. Dengra, MBBS, MD (Medicine), Consultant Diabetology (Mumbai), Diabetes, Thyroid & Obesity Specialist, Consultant Diabetologist, Jabalpur Hospital & Research Center
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