'Losing your job can be deadly, because it increases the risk of having a heart attack by up to two-thirds,' The Daily Telegraph reports.
The news is based on a US study that examined the association between different aspects of unemployment (such as number of job losses and time spent out of work) and the risk of having a heart attack.
The researchers followed 13,451 older American adults for a period of up to 18 years and found that unemployment status, multiple job losses and short periods without work are all significant risk factors for a heart attack, even with adjustment for conventional risk factors such as smoking.
Despite the authors' findings, there are several limitations to this study:
Of note, the reason for job loss was not explored by the researchers. This could potentially have provided more meaningful results, as it may have revealed other possible confounding factors that could be involved in the link between job loss and heart attack risk.
However, the study does seem to suggest there is a link between job and economic insecurity and ill heakth.