Work Weeks Greater than 45 Hours Can Increase Risk for Diabetes 

Longer work weeks increase diabetes risk, new research suggests, but the impact of longer work weeks affects women differently from men.

In an age of increased “work hard, play hard” mentality, health usually takes a backseat to productivity and metrics. A typical work week in the United States is 40 hours a week, but as many Americans know, 40 hours a week is quickly becoming 45+ hours weekly. With long periods of sitting and staying indoors, the prospects of developing a chronic disease suddenly become not so far-fetched. One disease that becomes increasingly prevalent with sedentary conditions is type 2 diabetes. Trends in diabetes prevalence are on the rise around the world, and according to Diabetes 2030, America will see an estimated 54% increase in diagnosed cases of diabetes. This increase of prevalence will add a crippling amount of healthcare spending, which could amount to $622 billion by 2030. Women in the workforce who log 45 hours or more per week may be at an increased risk of developing type 2 diabetes, writes Jamie Sculley. According to a prospective study conducted by Canadian researchers, women who worked more than 45 hours per week were at an increased risk of developing diabetes in comparison to women who worked between 30 to 40 hours per week.

According to the study, 7,065 Canadian participants between 35 and 74 years old were observed for a total of 12 years using surveys and medical records. Data involving their paid and unpaid weekly work hours, sex, marital status, long term health conditions, and other factors were taken into account. Patients were divided into 3 groups based on weekly hours. These 3 groups were those who worked 15-34 hours, 35-40 hours, and 45 or more hours per week. It is important to note that the researchers took into account the type of work participants partake in, whether it be active or sedentary.

When the data analysis finally took place, there were startling trends when comparing the male and female cohorts. According to Sculley, men who worked longer work weeks of 45 hours or more were at a lower risk of developing diabetes, but when the same criteria was applied to the women in the study, it was found that they were at a 63% higher chance of developing diabetes when compared to their counterparts who worked 35 to 40 hours per week. Other classic risk factors related to diabetes were taken into account, but even with the factoring of that data, only a slight decrease in risk was observed.

Although these findings may be alarming, the prospective observational studies have their limitations. Work hours and disease causality cannot be established through observational studies alone. Researchers suggest a few reasons for the phenomenon that took place in the study, such as women may be working even longer when household/family duties are taken into account, and the amount of stress placed on women in the workforce and the cortisol that is secreted in response.

Practice Pearls

• Women who work more than 45 hours per week may be at an increased risk of developing type 2 diabetes
•  It is important to educate our work force on stress relieving techniques and to recommend short bursts of exercise and mobility if they are working those long work weeks
•  Educate patients on high intensity workouts and the proven benefit of lowering the risk of diabetes

Longer work weeks increase diabetes risk — References:

Rowley, W. R., Bezold, C., Arikan, Y., Byrne, E., & Krohe, S. (2017). Diabetes 2030: Insights from Yesterday, Today, and Future Trends. Population Health Management,20(1), 6-12. doi:10.1089/pop.2015.0181

Sculley, J. (2019, July 08). Working 45 Hours Weekly May Increase Diabetes Risk In Women – But Not Men. Retrieved July 19, 2019, from https://www.studyfinds.org/working-45-hours-weekly-may-increase-diabetes-risk-women-not-men/

Usif Darwish, PharmD Candidate, Florida A&M University, College of Pharmacy & Pharmaceutical Sciences