There are a lot of studies showing that the key to mental health is keeping your brain busy. But is too much work bad for you? Yes, after a certain age. Here is why.
According to a study from The Melbourne Institute of Applied Economic and Social Research, working up to 30 hours a week is good for the brains of people over 40.
But if you work around 60 hours a week, your cognitive ability will be worse than if you didn’t work at all.
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This conclusion contradicts an old assumption about the brain: the more you use it, the better it will perform. The study showed that working more 30 hours a week after 40 can damage our cognitive abilities, including memory, abstract reasoning and executive reasoning.
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So what should people forced to work a full time job late in their lives do? It’s not like they can afford to work part time. The good news is that this study analyzed only the quantity of work, not its quality.
Other studies show that burnout is caused not only by how many hours a week you work, but also by boredom.
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In other words, the more routine your work involves, the less your brain is stimulated. Fatigue and stress can damage the brain, and the former are caused not only by long hours, but also by boring, repeating and predictable tasks.
The solution to this problem is yet to be discovered. You either cut down the hours, or you find a more creative and stimulating job. Please, share this!
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