Job Stress and Hypertension

One of the most common risk factors of cardiovascular disease is psychosocial stress. This may be encountered in everyday life - in school, in the home and most especially in your office space. Job stress has been repeatedly correlated with the elevation of risk for cardiovascular disease in both genders. However, there has been yet no clear evidence of the effect of job stress on blood pressure. Relationships between job stress and the development of hypertension is still under debate.

Recent studies show that individuals exposed to high job stress have a much higher heart rate and blood pressure. It is essential to consider other factors such as body mass index, degree of alcohol consumption, family history of hypertension and time when assessing hypertension. Alcohol consumption has been shown to correlate significantly with high blood pressure.

Since job stress varies with time, its effect on blood pressure is not easy to evaluate. The relationship between job stress and high blood pressure is difficult to highlight, since not all subjects may be affected and job strain varies over time. If an association between high work stress and hypertension exists, it is very important to observe this in correlation with the onset on hypertension.

Psychosocial factors should be evaluated by characterizing the psychological and social structure of the work environment. Analysis on work demands, social interaction and decision-making tasks ought to be carefully examined. According to Karasek et al who published an article in the American Journal of Public Health, work stress results from the combined effects of the demands of a work situation and the range of decision-making freedom available to the worker facing those demands. Decision making freedom is an operationalization concept of control defined as the combination of work decision-making authority and the prospect to use and develop skills on the work. The "job stress" model implicates that the combination of high job demands and low job decision-making freedom may lead to negative physical health outcomes. In simple words, when work demands are much higher in a worker than his or her perceived locus of control and decision-making capacity, job stress is bound to happen.

Job stress is the most common cause of occupational disability, including hypertension. This costs companies millions of dollars annually for reimbursement of health care claims. Many companies nowadays undergo cost reduction of health care benefits by enthusiastically promoting occupational health and safety, thus reducing absenteeism, medical & disability costs. This leap done by various companies in adapting occupational health programs have not only increased their annual income, but have also shown to increase employee satisfaction, thus also enhancing their productivity. Since workers are becoming very aware that companies & employers are going out of their way to promote their safety, they, in turn, are more motivated everyday to be more efficient. It is essential; therefore, for companies to periodically re-examine their policies, work environment, schedule and demands if they are fit with employee decision-making freedom so as to avoid job stress. Among individuals exposed to high job stress, a handful may develop hypertension and these workers would highly profit from a job stress reduction program.

Michael Russell
Your Independent guide to Halloween

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