They also didn’t directly examine the influence of manual labor on development of rheumatoid arthritis, says Kaleb Michaud, a researcher at the University of Nebraska Medical Center and co-director of the National Data Bank for Rheumatic Diseases.
“There is some evidence that greater physical labor, which can cause more stress on the body physically and mentally, can lead to rheumatoid arthritis,” Michaud, who wasn’t involved in the study, says by email.
“Not getting enough sleep and continuous repetitive tasks can lead to added stress that can impact your immune system,” Michaud adds. “The more triggers to the immune system just increase the chances for an irregular response by it that may lead to an autoimmune disease like rheumatoid arthritis.”
Reference
- Ilar A, Alfredsson L, Wiebert P, et al. Occupation and risk of developing rheumatoid arthritis: Results from a population-based case-control study. Arthritis Care Res (Hoboken). 2017 Aug 10. doi: 10.1002/acr.23321. [Epub ahead of print]