Having a stressful job may be an open invitation to heart disease, a new study by researchers at University College
London has suggested. Moreover employees under the age of 50 who had high work pressure were two-thirds more likely to suffer from heart
disease as compared to their relaxed counterparts.
Earlier studies had also pointed to a high stress-heart disease link, but this is the first study to identify specific changes in hormone levels and the nervous system. The study involved more than 10,000 civil servants and lasted for 12 years.
The study found that the heart rate of stressed workers was unlikely to pace itself over a period of time. Additionally stressed workers were more likely to smoke, have a poor physical condition and wrong dietary patters. All these factors are also linked to heart disease.
“During 12 years of follow-up, we found that chronic work stress was associated with CHD and this association was stronger among both men and women aged under 50 – their risk of CHD was an average of 68% more than for people who reported no stress at work. Among people of
retirement age (and therefore less likely to be exposed to work stress), the effect on CHD was less strong," said lead researcher Dr Tarani Chandola.
Stressed workers appeared to have a poor nervous system controlling their heart. This system regulates the tone and rhythm of the heart. Stress also seemed to undermine the "vagal tone" of the heart. The latter is critical in regulating heartbeat.
The stress hormone cortisol was found in higher levels in people who were always anxious about their jobs.
Reacting to the study, the British Heart Foundation said it furthered the understanding of the skewed chemistry in stressed workers. The details of the study appear in the latest issue of the European Heart Journal.
