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🇬🇷 Greece /Health & Science

Work Long Hours? The Hidden Health Cost, According to New Scientific Advice

From Ta Nea · () Greek

Translated from Greek and summarized by DistantNews. Read the original for the full story.

At a glance

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  • France’s ANSES says weekend work, long hours and early-morning or late-evening shifts can harm workers’ physical and mental health.
  • The agency estimates that irregular schedules affect 55% to 75% of France’s working population.
  • ANSES calls for these schedules to be limited and better regulated when they cannot be avoided.

Working weekends, putting in more than eight hours a day or 40 hours a week, and taking shifts from 5 a.m. to 8 a.m. or 7 p.m. to midnight can all carry a health cost, France’s ANSES says.

In a scientific opinion issued recently, the French Agency for Food, Environmental and Occupational Health and Safety described these patterns as “atypical working hours” and backed reform of existing French legislation. It estimates that such schedules affect between 55% and 75% of the working population.

There is a lot of scientific literature on the effects of night work on health, but also on family and social life.

· ANSES scientific director for health and workThe director described the evidence behind the agency’s assessment of irregular schedules.

The people involved include employees, civil servants, self-employed workers, farmers, shopkeepers, factory workers, nurses, caregivers, sales workers, cashiers, maintenance workers, home-care assistants, bakers, cooks and waiters.

ANSES said there is extensive scientific research on the effects of night work on health, as well as on family and social life. Weekend work can also damage personal life and has been linked in studies to depression, anxiety, disturbed sleep, pain, fatigue, musculoskeletal disorders and accidents.

You will recover less, you will have less restorative sleep, with consequences for your general condition and your mental health.

· ANSES scientific directorThe statement explains how irregular schedules can affect recovery and well-being.

Sleep debt, stress and disruption to family life can build up over time. The agency’s scientific director for health and work said workers may recover less and get less restorative sleep. Limited time with spouses, children and friends can weaken family and social life and later affect health.

ANSES concluded that atypical working hours should be restricted as much as possible. Where they cannot be avoided, it said they should be regulated more effectively, including through protections used for night work, such as medical monitoring and provisions for pregnant workers. A legal definition of atypical hours, it added, would improve the prevention of occupational risks.

When you see your spouse and children only briefly, when you cannot see your friends, this disconnection from collective rhythms damages your social and family life and can then affect your health.

· ANSES scientific directorThe director linked irregular schedules to social isolation and family disruption.
About this summary

Originally published by Ta Nea in Greek. Translated, summarized, and contextualized automatically by DistantNews, with a note on how the source frames the story. Not individually reviewed before publishing. How this works.

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