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In a large study,
researchers followed over 800 workers for 25 years. They found
that those with high job strain or an effort-reward imbalance
had double the chance of death from cardiovascular disease
than those with no such imbalance.
What is "effort-reward
imbalance"?
Effort-reward imbalance
is basically too much work and pressure and not enough rewards,
such as pay or time off. The John D. and Catherine T. McArthur
Network on Socioeconomic Status and Health put together a
comparison
of seven studies, done in the 1990s, on the effects of a negative
effort-reward imbalance and resulting health problems. The
studies show that health problems such as angina, fatal or
non-fatal coronary heart disease, hypertension, psychiatric
disorders and coronary restenosis have all been associated
with effort-reward imbalances.
Adverse
Health Outcomes of Effort-Reward Imbalance at Work
A recent
study at the University of Helsinki studied over 800 employees
at Valmet factories in Jyväskylä, central Finland.
The factories manufacture such things as paper machines, tractors,
firearms and gauges. The work tasks of the employees studied
varied from foundry work and heavy engineering to precision
engineering and clerical and administrative work.
What the researchers
found was that the nature of each worker's occupation was
not as relevant as the amount of strain. Those who reported
high job strain were 2.2 times more likely to die of cardiovascular
disease than those with low job strain. Those with little
reward for the amount of effort had a 2.4 times higher risk
of cardiovascular death.
The researchers
also speculated that chronic job stress may also boost a person's
chances of heart disease, as well as the chance of ill effects
on the hormonal and nervous system function, which are key
elements of the cardiovascular system. Additional research
points to evidence that work stress may also result in effects
such as blood clotting or insulin resistance, which are major
risk factors for heart disease and stroke.
The researchers
also found that greater risk of heart problems was associated
with those who had high cholesterol and BMI (body mass index),
regardless of factors such as age, exercise and smoking.
One interesting
note was that the link between job strain and cardiovascular
disease was the strongest among workers who remained at the
same job five years after they were first assessed. This supports
the idea that chronic or long-term stress is more likely to
cause problems.
The researchers
conclude that the findings support the holistic view that,
in addition to established heart risks like smoking, inactivity
and high-fat diets, psychological factors such as job stress
contribute to risks as well.
British
Medical Journal October 2002; 325: 857-860
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