Bosses unwilling to agree to flexible working could give you a higher chance of heart disease, researchers find

• Flexible hours was linked to equivalent heart health of being ten years younger

Dolly Parton once famously sang it was enough to make you crazy if you let it.

But now researchers have found avoiding the 9 to 5 slog can reduce the chances of a heart disease.

A study found those working for caring bosses who allowed flexible working hours were less likely to suffer heart problems.

In fact, employees whose work did not conflict with their home lives had the equivalent heart health of being ten years younger, researchers suggest.

Those over 45 and staff members with a higher risk of cardiovascular problems reaped the most benefits according to Harvard and Penn State universities.

Published in American Journal of Public Health, the study involved 1,528 employees in high and moderately paid IT roles as well as low-wage caregivers.

They had their systolic blood pressure, BMI, glycated haemoglobin, smoking status, and cholesterol recorded at the beginning of the study and 12 months later.

Their health information was used to calculate their cardio metabolic risk score (CRS), where a higher number indicates an higher risk of the disease.

The experts found workplace interventions had no ‘significant’ overall impact on participants’ CRS.

However, they noted it reduced the CRS in those who had a higher baseline cardiovascular disease risk.

Participants who had a reduction lowered their CRS the equivalent of knocking 5.5 to 10.3 years off their age.

Staff over the age of 45 with a higher CRS were more likely to benefit.

Professor Orfeu Buxton, director of the Sleep, Health & Society Collaboratory at Penn State, said: ‘The intervention was designed to change the culture of the workplace over time with the intention of reducing conflict between employees’ work and personal lives and ultimately improving their health.

‘Now we know such changes can improve employee health and should be more broadly implemented.’ Supervisors were trained to show support for employees’ personal lives alongside their job performance.

Employees joined their seniors at training sessions on boosting staff’s control over their schedules and tasks.

An IT company with high tech workers took part, alongside a caregiving company with low-wage carers.

Professor Lisa Berkman, from Harvard Chan School and director of the Harvard Centre for Population and Development Studies, said: ‘The study illustrates how working conditions are important social determinants of health.

‘When stressful workplace conditions and work-family conflict were mitigated, we saw a reduction in the risk of cardiovascular disease among more vulnerable employees, without any negative impact on their productivity.

‘These findings could be particularly consequential for low- and middle-wage workers who traditionally have less control over their schedules and job demands and are subject to greater health inequities.’