The workweek may start with more than a groan — it could be taking a measurable toll on your health, a study from the University of Hong Kong has found.
Older adults who experienced anxiety specifically on Mondays had significantly higher levels of cortisol, the body’s primary stress hormone, in their system one to two months later, per the study.
Cortisol, at consistently high levels, can strain the immune system and contribute to long-term health problems such as heart disease and anxiety, according to health experts.
Researchers reported a 23% increase in overall cortisol levels among those who felt anxious at the start of the week, compared to people who reported anxiety on other days.
Some of the reaction is mental, but shifts in sleep and routine over the weekend don’t help either.
“Cortisol is not just reactive,” Stanford University neuroscientist Robert Sapolsky told the New York Post. “Expectation of stress can drive cortisol levels even higher than the stress itself.”
The findings were based on tracked weekly cortisol data from more than 3,500 surveyed adults over 50 in England and published in the Journal of Affective Disorders.
The Monday-specific spike showed up even in retirees.
“There is something effortful about Mondays,” Modupe Akinola, a professor at Columbia Business School, told the Post. “You have to get up, get dressed, get focused, deal with traffic … and your body’s stress system is telling you to get ready to battle.”
To get ahead of the anxiety of the workweek, Ms. Akinola recommends taking stock of what’s bothering you before the week starts.
“A daily or weekly stress inventory … will help stress move from being background noise to top of mind, and when this happens, you can actually take control,” she said.
