Occupational risks to the health of journalists

Journalism is a complex job. There are many difficulties in the position: issues of travel, finding the news, checking the facts, writing the article, getting it to the news desk as quickly as possible.

It entails a lot of hard work, a lot of rushing around interspersed with periods of inactivity waiting for things to happen and then meeting difficult deadlines. The hours of work are unpredictable and often very long. It is not a job that everyone would enjoy.

Are there any hazards in the job as a journalist which are related to the job itself? Is there any information that we can use to confirm that there are hazards in the work?

Every 10 years, the Registrar General publishes a supplement concentrating on mortality and illness in relation to different work groups (the last one was published in 1995). There is an enormous amount of data presented in it and there is a very good commentary which discusses the implications of the information.

The publication divides all UK occupations into various groups and then looks at differences in the incidence of disease and death between the groups. The data is divided into male and female. Journalists are included in a group which is labelled “Artistic and Literary Occupations”. This, unfortunately, means that any data cannot be directly related to journalism – the other occupations included in the group, eg. musicians, photographers, actors, may alter the findings considerably. However, with that understanding, what does the latest supplement tell us about the health of journalists?

For males, there is a high incidence of all the illnesses due to alcohol intake, liver disease, cancer of the mouth and throat. Deaths directly due to drug dependence and accidental poisoning by drugs were raised considerably.

For females, again, a high incidence of alcohol-related diseases and deaths were raised due to the following causes; accidental poisoning by drugs, suicide, and fire.

Other information suggests that journalists, male and female, do not have a higher incidence of smoking than the general population but there is a suggestion of high alcohol intake in both sexes.

What is the advice for journalists in controlling the hazards that are a part of their work? Certainly, examine your alcohol intake. Alcohol is measured in units, one unit of alcohol being half a pint of beer, a glass of wine or a short of spirits.

Sensible levels
Men – under 28 units of alcohol per week. Women – under 21 units per week
Intermediate levels
Men – 28-50 units per week. Women – 21-35 units per week.
Unsafe levels
Men – over 50 units per week. Women – over 35 units per week

If you are in the ‘unsafe’ level, your health is certainly at risk because of your alcohol intake and you should take steps to reduce your intake. The longer you continue at an unsafe level the greater your risk of serious illness.

Smoking is a clear risk to health, however, there are NO safe levels. The more you smoke, the greater the risk to your health. Whilst it is not easy to stop smoking there are aids to stopping in the form of nicotine replacement therapy, which do reduce the immediate effects when stopping. Ask your family doctor for support if you want to stop.Dr Ian Aston

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