Working more than 11 hours a day rather than the usual 9am to 5pm may increase your risk of heart disease, according to new research.

The findings arise from analysis of data from the Whitehall II study, which has followed the health and wellbeing of over 10,000 civil service workers since 1985 and has been part-funded by the British Heart Foundation.

Professor Peter Weissberg, medical director at the British Heart Foundation, said: "The Whitehall study has been hugely influential in shaping our understanding of the social determinants of heart disease.

"These most recent findings raise the possibility that long working hours may increase the risk of a heart attack. But further studies are required to confirm this association and clarify how it might be used to change our current approach to assessing someone's risk of developing heart disease and what advice we give on working conditions."

The study, which also received funds from the Medical Research Council, is published in the Annals of Internal Medicine.

Notes

Statement issued in response to study: "Using Additional Information on Working Hours to Predict Coronary Heart Disease: A Cohort Study" by Mika Kivima et al. Published in the Annals of Internal Medicine on Monday 4 April 2011.

Source:
British Heart Foundation