Is your job secretly aging you faster? Take this quiz to find out if you should switch jobs

The constant grinding at work may actually do more harm than good. As we all know, it has become a new normal for employees to remain glued to their screens for long hours without any breaks. The sedentary lifestyle, coupled with increased stress levels, is causing people to age faster. The same has been proposed by a UK-based medical clinic and its latest research has helped them develop a new online calculator to reveal premature aging, per The Daily Mail. Experts at Harley Street Skin Clinic in South London have come up with a simple tool to tell people if their job is stopping them from becoming the best versions of themselves.

“Since the pandemic, more workers around the world have been working from home, and many have faced challenges such as less physical activity and longer working hours,” the medical clinic shared on its official website, unveiling its online calculator. Calling it the "Ageing Jobs Index," the skincare provider attempted to make it easier for salary earners to measure the rate at which they are visibly growing older. They broke it down into ten objective questions ranging from overall work-life balance to their lifestyle choices. Additionally, it claimed to reveal the potential toll of an individual’s work life on their physical appearance.

Among several such tools in an already existing market, the latest addition can help people understand if their work life is behind wrinkles and sagging skin. The tool considers employees’ shift patterns, regular hours, working location, stress levels and physical activity to score them on a scale of zero to one hundred. Those who score 40 or less are going through minor aging, per the medical clinic’s calculator. And those who score above 40 may have to deal with premature aging. Moreover, the skin provider claimed to have backed its findings with studies.

These studies had likely shown that regular hours at work and day shifts were better compared to long work hours and night shifts to maintain optimum health, the experts noted. They added that working long hours can increase the risk of heart disease, stroke, and obesity and affect mental well-being. On the contrary, flexible working hours could boost morale and productivity and allow employees to spend more time with their family and friends. Notably, salary earners in any work setting, whether it’s working from home or commuting daily, can access the tool freely.

The online calculator also warned that consistently working long hours every week can lead to burnout and a poor sleep cycle over time. Employees would also notice a slight dip in their overall productivity levels, apart from the risk of serious health problems like type 2 diabetes and heart disease. Those working in much more pleasant outdoor locations, who score 60 to 80 on the metrics, might face the dangers of being exposed to the sun for longer periods.

As per the clinic, sun damage could lead to sunspots on the face, a sign of “severe aging.” The 80 to 100 scoring range, the worst on the scale, was categorized as “extreme aging,” where employees may start noticing deeper, more pronounced wrinkles spreading across the face, along with sagging around the jawline, cheeks and neck.

You can take Harley Street Skin Clinic's test here.