Nobody likes to be stressed out at work. It can be simply exhausting. And as if that wasn’t enough, a new report indicates that it can actually have a physical impact on your cardiovascular health as well. A recent meta-analysis combined the data from 13 similar studies of a combined 198,000 people to find that those who indicated stress in the workplace were at a nearly 25% increased risk of suffering from Coronary Heart Disease (CHD).
Factors such as quantity of work, having sufficient time to complete tasks, decision-making freedoms, and overall demand of the job were considered and evaluated against study-specific median scores. The statistical associations remained consistent, even when results were adjusted to compensate for age, sex and socioeconomic status. The researchers indicated that lowering stress levels, particularly those related to work, could have a dramatic affect on preventing a person’s risk of CHD. They also indicated that nutrition, exercise and hereditary factors also play an obvious role in the risk of CHD, and that all factors need to be considered together to gain a better perspective on one’s predisposition to CHD.
If you have ever said something along the lines of “this job will be the death of me,” you may not be too far from the truth. When your stress levels start to rise, it is important to take a moment to collect yourself and approach the situation with a calm, collected mindset. This will help to keep those stress levels to a minimum. There are plenty of other methods you can take to reduce stress levels, including meditation, time management techniques and more, so check them out! They just might save your life!