Rat-race repercussion: Working an 11-hour day can increase heart attack danger by 67 per cent

If you’re about to embark on your usual 12-hour day at the office, you might want to pause a while – a few hours, actually.

A study has found that those who spend more than 11 hours at work increase their chance of having a heart attack by two thirds.

Researchers say the risk is so great that GPs should ask patients what hours they work along with how much they drink or smoke.

The team from University College London looked at more than 7,000 civil servants working in Whitehall over a period of 11 years and established how many hours they worked on average a day.

They also collected information including the condition of their heart from medical records and health checks.

Over the period, a total of 192 had suffered a heart attack. But the study, published in the journal Annals of Internal Medicine, found that those who worked more than 11 hours a day were 67 per cent more likely to have one than those who had a ‘nine to five’ job. (read more)