Alternative Health Blog

All work and not enough play? Apparently not so good for the brain if you accept the results of a new study. Finnish researchers are reporting that working long hours can lead to lessened mental skills and even dementia.

The study, published in the American Journal of Epidemiology, found that workers averaging 55 hours per week or more were less proficient in word recall and experienced short-term memory problems compared to workers who average the typical 40-hour work week.

More than 2,200 middle-age British civil servants were evaluated, leading one researcher, Dr. Marianna Virtanen,  to warn that “the disadvantages of overtime work should be taken seriously.” The civil servants took five different cognitive tests, one between 1997 and 1999, then again between 2002 and 2004. There was a direct relationship between overtime and poor test performance: The greater the overtime, the lower the test scores.

Virtanen and her colleagues wrote there is no conclusive reason why overwork might cause mental decline. Some possibilities: Less sleep and more sleep problems, depression, unhealthy lifestyle choices as a coping mechanism and stress-related cardiovascular disease.

The use of British civil servants was an intriguing choice. A landmark stress study used civil servants to show those in lower-category jobs felt the most stress because they had little or no control over their jobs. While you might thing middle-managers have the most stress, they tend to have some control over their workday, which reduces stress.

Of course, working overtime often goes to individuals with lower-category jobs too. It’s likely no coincidence that higher overtime and stress-related mental decline go hand in hand. It might not be just the numbers of hours you work, but the number of hours you work with much control.