How long hours impact mind
Thursday January 26th, 2012
People who work extra long hours may be stacking up their odds of suffering from bouts of major depression, Finnish researchers warned last night.
The finding is the latest to emerge from a major study of British civil servants.
People who work 11 hours a day faced a doubled risk of succumbing to serious depression compared with those who work fewer than eight hours a day, according to the report in PLoS One.
Dr Marianna Virtanen of the Finnish Institute of Occupational Health and of University College London, UK, analysed details of about 2,000 middle-aged civil servants.
She reports that the findings are robust. The link may reflect the impact of the pressure of overwork - and it may also reflect that people prone to depression choose to work long hours.
She said: "Although occasionally working overtime may have benefits for the individual and society, it is important to recognize that working excessive hours is also associated with an increased risk of major depression."
Overtime Work as a Predictor of Major Depressive Episode: A 5-Year Follow-Up of the Whitehall II Study. Virtanen M, Stansfeld SA, Fuhrer R, Ferrie JE, Kivima¨ki M. PLoS ONE 7(1): e30719. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0030719
Tags: Europe | General Health | Mental Health | UK News
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