LONDON (Reuters) - People who are exposed to bullying or violence in their work may be more likely to develop cardiovascular disease than those who do not, according to a European study.
The researchers looked at more than 79,000 men and women working between the ages of 19 and 65 with no history of heart disease. Overall, about nine percent said they had been bullied and 13 percent said they had been exposed to violence during the previous year.
After a 12-year follow-up on average, 3229 people, or about four percent of those, had heart disease or were hospitalized for related problems, such as a heart attack or a stroke.
The study found that people who are bullying at work are 59 percent more likely to have heart disease or hospital admission due to heart attacks or stroke than those who do not bully.
It also found that workers exposed to violence had a 25 percent higher risk of heart disease or hospitalization for heart problems.
"If we could eliminate bullying and violence at work, the effect on cardiovascular disease prevention would be similar to eliminating the impact of diabetes and excessive alcohol intake," said Tianwei Xu of the University of Copenhagen in Denmark and lead author of the study.
Hard working conditions, including stress and long working hours, have long been linked to an increased risk of heart disease, but the research has not yet provided a clear picture of the role that exposure to bullying and violence may play in the work, the researchers wrote in the European Heart Journal.
Stress, such as bullying and violence, may also contribute to mood disorders such as anxiety or depression or promote unhealthy behaviors such as smoking or over-eating, the researchers note.
They added that severe stress may also contribute to high blood pressure, which in turn increases the risk of heart disease.
The study found that most cases of bullying are co-workers, heads or subordinates. The perpetrators of physical violence are mostly clients or persons who receive service from the employee.
Some professions appeared to pose a greater threat of physical violence: more than 47 percent of social workers were exposed to violence, more than 29 percent of those providing personal services and protection services, more than 25 percent of health workers, and more than 16 percent Percent of teachers.
Prejudice, childhood experience and coping skills can affect whether bullying or violence will increase the risk of heart disease and to what extent this risk increases, said Christoph Hermann-Lingen of the University of Göttingen Medical Center in Germany and author of the editorial accompanying the study.