Working longer hours ‘increases stroke and heart disease risk’

People working longer hours could be at an increased risk of poor heart health, according to a new study published in The Lancet.

A systematic review of studies in the PubMed and Embase databases was carried out to assess long working hours as a risk factor for incident coronary heart disease and stroke, with 25 studies from 24 cohorts in Europe, the USA and Australia included.

The meta-analysis comprised coronary heart disease data for 603,838 people and stroke data for 528,908 individuals.

It was shown that employees who work long hours have a higher risk of stroke than those working standard hours; the association with coronary heart disease is weaker, but still present.

The study concluded: "These findings suggest that more attention should be paid to the management of vascular risk factors in individuals who work long hours."

Coronary heart disease is the leading cause of death both in the UK and worldwide, while strokes are the third biggest killer.