Health Problems due to Long Working Hours in Japan: Working Hours, Workers' Compensation (Karoshi), and Preventive Measures

Iwasaki, Kenji; Takahashi, Masaya; Nakata, Akinori

doi:10.2486/indhealth.44.537

Cited by 159 publications

(115 citation statements)

References 8 publications

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“…Previous studies have suggested an association between long working hours and adverse health outcomes, such as insufficient sleep, depression, and cardiovascular disease (2)(3)(4). In particular, a great deal of research has focused on the influence of overtime work on health problems in Japan (5)(6)(7).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Weekend sleep intervention for workers with habitually short sleep periods

Kubo¹,

Takahashi²,

Sato³

et al. 2011

Scand J Work Environ Health

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mentioning

confidence: 99%

Weekend sleep intervention for workers with habitually short sleep periods

Kubo¹,

Takahashi²,

Sato³

et al. 2011

Scand J Work Environ Health

Self Cite

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“…The overall total of overtime was equivalent to >60 hours per month. In Japan, an amendment to the relevant law in 2005 made it obligatory for overworked workers to receive health guidance via an interview with a physician 12) . According to this legislation, 80 hours overtime per month (approximately 4 hours overtime per day) would prevent workers from sleeping the required total of approximately 6 hours per day 13) .…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Cross‐sectional Study of the Association between Working Hours and Sleep Duration among the Japanese Working Population

Ohtsu

Kaneita

Aritake

et al. 2013

Journal of Occupational Health

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A Cross‐sectional Study of the Association between Working Hours and Sleep Duration among the Japanese Working Population: Tadahiro OHTSU, et al. Department of Public Health, Showa University School of Medicine, Japan— Objectives This study aimed to clarify the association between long working hours and short sleep duration among Japanese workers. Methods We selected 4,000 households from across Japan by stratified random sampling and conducted an interview survey of a total of 662 participants (372 men; 290 women) in November 2009. Logistic regression analyses were performed using “sleep duration <6 hours per day” as a dependent variable to examine the association between working hours/overtime hours and short sleep duration. Results When male participants who worked for ≥7 but <9 hours per day were used as a reference, the odds ratio (OR) for short sleep duration in those who worked for ≥11 hours was 8.62 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 3.94−18.86). With regard to overtime hours among men, when participants without overtime were used as a reference, the OR for those whose period of overtime was ≥3 hours but <4 hours was 3.59 (95% CI: 1.42−9.08). For both men and women, those with long weekday working hours tended to have a short sleep duration during weekdays and holidays. Conclusions It is essential to avoid working long hours in order to prevent short sleep duration.

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“…With regard to occupational safety and health in Japan, Wada reviewed the literature concerning overworked workers' health 28) in 2002, and Liu et al reported that overtime work might be related to the risk of acute myocardial infarction 29) . The Expert Committee of the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare (MHWL) compiled a report on the relationship between overwork and workers' health 30,31) , and found that more than 100 h of overtime a month introduces a high risk both of brain/ heart vascular disease and mental disorder. In 2005, health guidance for overworked workers was enacted in a revised Japan's Industrial Safety and Health Law (article 66-8) 32) .…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

An Occupational Health Study of Emergency Physicians in Japan: Health Assessment by Immune Variables (CD4, CD8, CD56, and NK Cell Activity) at the Beginning of Work

Okamoto¹,

Tsunoda²,

Teruya

et al. 2008

Journal of Occupational Health

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An Occupational Health Study of E m e r g e n c y P h y s i c i a n s i n J a p a n : H e a l t h Assessment by Immune Variables (CD4, CD8, CD56, and NK cell activity) at the Beginning of Work: Hiroteru OKAMOTO, et al. Department of Preventive Medicine and Public Health, School of Medicine, Kyorin University-This study was conducted to evaluate the occupational health of Japanese physicians in emergency medicine. Subjects participating in this study were eighty-nine physicians working at 12 medical facilities (10 critical care emergency centers) in Japan. Participants were asked to complete a questionnaire of work conditions and to provide blood samples for immune variable measurements (CD4, CD8, CD56 and natural killer cell (NK cell) activity) before commencing their work. The data collected from seventy-four of 89 participating physicians were analyzed. The traditional work group comprised of 39 emergency physicians, who were significantly overworked compared to other two groups: the shift work group and the day work group. Among these three groups, no immune variable was significantly different except lymphocyte, number of CD4, and NK cell activity; and the NK cell activity of the shift work group was significantly lower than those of the traditional work group (p<0.01) and the day work group (p<0.01) in terms of Bonferroni's multiple comparison, probably due to circadian rhythm. It was indicated that NK cell activity was significantly lower in samples collected at night versus in the morning (OR=8.34, 95%CI: 1.95-35.6, p<0.01) through multiple logistic regression analyses. NK cell activity was significantly lower in individuals taking 0-3 days off per month, as compared to those taking 4 or more days off (OR=4.65, 95%CI: 1.27-17.0, p=0.02), according to multiple logistic regression analyses. Therefore, the low NK cell activity appears to have reflected the extent of fatigue arising from physicians' overwork. Overwork would have been a potential risk for the physicians' health, resulting in a lower quality of Japanese emergency medical services than that which could have been achieved otherwise. This study suggests that it would be better for the Japanese emergency physicians to take 4 or more days off per month for their health and the quality of their services. (J Occup Health 2008; 50: 136-146)

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Health Problems due to Long Working Hours in Japan: Working Hours, Workers' Compensation (Karoshi), and Preventive Measures

Cited by 159 publications

References 8 publications

Weekend sleep intervention for workers with habitually short sleep periods

Weekend sleep intervention for workers with habitually short sleep periods

A Cross‐sectional Study of the Association between Working Hours and Sleep Duration among the Japanese Working Population

An Occupational Health Study of Emergency Physicians in Japan: Health Assessment by Immune Variables (CD4, CD8, CD56, and NK Cell Activity) at the Beginning of Work

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