COLUMBUS, Ohio — Ohio ranks 14th in the nation for occupational burnout risk, according to a new study that examined work hours, health impacts, and access to mental health care across U.S. states.
The analysis, conducted by Nutrition NC, gave Ohio an overall burnout risk score of 51.51 out of 100, placing the state just outside the top 10 most at-risk states.
Researchers analyzed five factors: average weekly work hours, commute times, availability of mental health providers, days of lost productivity due to poor physical or mental health, and online search activity related to burnout symptoms.
Ohio workers average 41 hours per week, one of the highest workload levels in the Midwest, according to the study. Residents also reported losing an average of 11.7 days per month to poor physical or mental health, the second-highest rate among neighboring states, behind only West Virginia.
At the same time, Ohio’s long-commute burden was relatively low. Only 5.3% of workers reported commutes of 60 minutes or longer, reducing transportation-related stress compared with coastal states, the study found.
Ohio was reported to have 394.7 mental health providers per 100,000 residents, while Google Trends data showed a burnout-related search interest score of 64.
Compared with surrounding states, Ohio ranked as less susceptible to burnout than Pennsylvania, which ranked 11th, and West Virginia, which ranked seventh. However, Ohio ranked as more at risk than Indiana, which placed 41st, and Michigan, which ranked 44th.
Nationally, Texas ranked as the state most at risk for burnout with a score of 65.18, driven by long workweeks averaging 43.4 hours and limited access to mental health providers. Virginia and Louisiana ranked second and third, respectively.
West Virginia stood out for the mental health toll on workers, with residents reporting an average of 14.8 days per month when poor physical or mental health prevented normal activity — the highest rate in the nation.
At the other end of the spectrum, Alaska ranked as the least burnout-prone state with a score of 24.30, largely due to the shortest average workweek at 31.8 hours.
Natalie Mootz, chief marketing officer of Nutrition NC, said the findings point to broader workforce challenges.
“The data shows concerning levels of burnout risk in many states, especially those combining long work hours with limited mental health resources,” Mootz said. “Texas’s position at the top of our index signals a need for workplace wellness interventions and expanded mental health access.”
The study used data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the American Community Survey, and Google Trends. Kentucky was excluded from the analysis due to insufficient data.