CHAMGAP
APPROVEDReviewed and approved by the Chamgap Editorial Team (2026-08-05). The draft was written by AI, the existence of all 1 cited sources was verified at the original page, and the verdict passed blind grading and adversarial audit. Methodology v0.6.
Verdict No. 2242 · Search date 2026-08-05 · Methodology v0.6

Job strain,
does it really help with Increased incidence of coronary heart disease?

30-Second Summary
C
Evidence Grade C · 50 · Safety caution
Job strain was modestly associated with coronary events, but this was not a prevention trial of workplace redesign
Cardiac symptoms or severe occupational stress warrant medical assessment and workplace review. Individual coping should not substitute for organizational risk control.
What the
research shows
The grade is C with 50 points. Across 13 European cohorts and 197,473 workers, 2,358 coronary events occurred over 7.5 years mean follow-up. Job strain had age- and sex-adjusted HR 1.23 (95% CI 1.10 to 1.37) and socioeconomic-status-adjusted HR 1.17 (1.05 to 1.31). The adjusted excess risk was only 17%, so the effect size was classified as small. Exposure was a baseline questionnaire classification, not a workplace-redesign trial.
What the
ads claim
An association between questionnaire-defined strain and heart disease does not prove that a particular culture program prevents events.
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Useful facts when choosing a product

  • High demand and low control used study-specific median cutoffs.
  • Thirteen cohorts contributed 197,473 workers, 1,488,728 person-years, and 2,358 events.
  • Exposure was baseline self-report; harmonization preceded outcome linkage.
Gap Measurement · Verdict 2242 · C 50
What advertising claims
What independent, higher-quality research supports
△ GAP
01

What the research actually shows

IPD-Work harmonized Job Content Questionnaire and Demand-Control Questionnaire items in 13 cohorts. Demand above and control below each study's median defined strain. Scale correlations with full versions exceeded 0.9 except one at 0.8. Of 203,816 workers, 5,124 with missing data and 1,219 with baseline coronary disease were excluded, leaving 197,473. Verdict 2215 is C with 54 points for an individual mindfulness app and stress score, a different intervention and endpoint.

02

Why this is classified as C (50)

Hard events and lagged analyses are offset by the small adjusted HR of 1.17, questionnaire-defined observational exposure, and residual confounding, giving C with 50 points.

Counterpoint. Healthy workers leaving demanding jobs may bias risk downward, and lagging does not remove selection into employment.

Rejudgment record. Cross-check applied — Original scale definitions, 13-cohort event counts, lagged analyses, and socioeconomic and behavioral adjustments

Scoring profile behind this grade
EndpointHHard endpoint - actual events such as death
ReplicationR1Single confirmatory trial
IndependenceI2Decisive evidence is publicly or non-profit funded
Effect sizeE~Statistically positive but below the threshold

The scoring table and the verdict agree (C).

Sub-claim grades by effect

This ingredient is marketed for several effects. A single overall grade blends strong and weak claims together, so each effect is graded separately here. The overall grade reflects the strongest disconfirming or core claim.

Effect (sub-claim)GradeBasis
Observed association between questionnaire-defined job strain and coronary diseaseCSES-adjusted HR was 1.17.
Increasing job control prevents coronary disease?No organizational intervention tested coronary events.

Cross-check — Codex and Claude

This verdict was drafted by Codex through literature review and source-existence checks, cross-checked through blind grading and adversarial audit, and settled by reapplying the methodology boundary rules. Cases with split grades were resolved through rejudgment.
03

Evidence Table

StudyDesignSampleFundingEndpointResultWeight
Study 1Collaborative individual-data analysis of 13 prospective cohorts2,358Public and nonprofit support including MRC, Wellcome Trust, NIH, and European agenciesCoronary death or first nonfatal myocardial infarctionAge- and sex-adjusted HR 1.23 (1.10-1.37); SES-adjusted 1.17 (1.05-1.31); excluding first three years 1.31 (1.15-1.48)Core large observational event evidence
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Receipt — 1 References

All 1 cited sources were verified for existence at the original page (as of 2026-08-05).

Kivimäki M, Nyberg ST, Batty GD, et al. Job strain as a risk factor for coronary heart disease: a collaborative meta-analysis of individual participant data. Lancet. 2012;380(9852):1491-1497. PMID: 22981903. DOI: 10.1016/S0140-6736(12)60994-5.
checked
Draft and rewrite: Codex (AI) · Verification: Codex blind grading and adversarial audit · Final adjudication: Claude
Reviewed and approved: Chamgap Editorial Team · Approval date: 2026-08-05 · Corrections: none

Cite this verdict

Job strain x incident coronary heart disease Evidence Grade C card
[Chamgap] Job strain x incident coronary heart disease — Evidence Grade C·50. 1 cited sources checked. Source: https://chamgap.com/en/verdicts/heart/job-strain-coronary-heart-disease/ · CC BY 4.0

CC BY 4.0 — free to use with attribution; do not distort grades, numbers, or verdict meaning.

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What this document does and does not do

Chamgap is an information source. It reports what research has and has not confirmed; it does not tell readers what to take or buy. That decision belongs to readers and, when needed, medical or legal professionals. This verdict reflects literature available up to the search date and may change as new research appears. Nothing here is medical advice.