The Hidden Cost of Stress at Work

According to data from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, Americans work more hours per year than those in similar countries. Working is, in a sense, an American pastime. Work brings benefits, but it also brings costs. Many jobs are stressful or physically demanding, imposing a toll on both mental and physical health. The question of how work affects our health is incredibly important but hard to answer. Of course, there are some easily understood cases. For example, coal miners face an increased risk in mortality due to respiratory diseases, and firefighters are at increased risk of cancer from exposure to asbestos. Most of us aren’t mining coal or putting out fires. Our jobs are more mundane, but they may still impact our health.In a recent study published in the Journal of Public Economics, we sought to understand the effect of working in a stressful and physically demanding occupation on our health. We focused on the birth outcomes of mothers who work in two occupations that require extensive education and training: physicians and lawyers. We compared mothers who were physicians to those who were lawyers, since physicians and lawyers have similar years ...