In the past, researchers had been divided on whether it was working in an unclean workplace — facing exposure to agents such as mold, lead or loud noises — or working in an unstimulating environment that took the biggest toll on brain health as people aged. A new study by a Florida State University researcher shows that both a lack of stimulation in the workplace and a dirty working environment can have a long-term cognitive effect on employees. Researchers obtained cognitive function data from working adults participating in the Midlife in the United States study. Their results had two major takeaways: One was that greater occupational complexity — that is the learning of new skills and taking on new challenges — resulted in stronger cognitive performance particularly for women as they aged. The second result was that men and women who had jobs that exposed them to a dirty working environment saw a cognitive decline. http://news.fsu.edu/More-FSU-News/Dull-and-dirty-Your-workplace-could-affect-brain-function
