European companies are pouring unprecedented sums into employee well-being, yet mental health indicators across the workforce continue to deteriorate, raising concerns among researchers, unions and public health agencies.

A continent-wide survey released this year by the European Agency for Safety and Health at Work found that nearly half of workers across 30 countries report overwhelming workloads, while a third feel undervalued in their roles. Another 16 percent say they have faced violence or verbal harassment at work, underscoring the strain many employees experience on a daily basis.

The rise in workplace stress comes even as businesses expand support programmes at a rapid pace. In 2023, companies across Europe spent an estimated $19.6 billion (€16.9 billion) on wellness offerings, which now reach nearly a third of European employees. These initiatives include mindfulness sessions, coaching and stress management training. But researchers say such efforts often miss the root causes of worker distress.

A study by Australian researchers earlier this year labelled the situation a “prevailing paradox,” noting that increasing investment has not translated into improved mental health outcomes. Experts argue that many programmes remain surface-level and fail to target the structural pressures embedded in modern employment.

“After the pandemic, we saw a surge in people experiencing mental health issues linked to work, particularly burnout,” said Sonia Nawrocka of the European Trade Union Institute. She noted that psychosocial risks — such as excessive working hours, job insecurity, limited recognition and workplace bullying — continue to rise despite the attention on wellness.

Manal Azzi, a senior occupational safety and health specialist at the International Labour Organization, stressed that meaningful progress requires companies to rethink how they operate. Recruitment, promotion, performance assessments, management styles and communication practices all influence employee well-being, she said.

Research from TELUS Health suggests that managers who successfully support their teams share several traits, including genuine concern for staff, inclusive leadership, clear decision-making and a focus on purpose rather than just tasks.

Some employers are beginning to adopt wider reforms. Trials of the four-day work week in countries such as the United Kingdom, Ireland, Iceland and Germany have shown early promise in reducing burnout and improving workers’ overall health.

Even so, Azzi said many companies remain hesitant to address deeper organisational issues, often due to perceived cost or uncertainty about how to begin. This is where policy may play a greater role, according to Nawrocka. Sweden has rules to tackle workplace intimidation and unhealthy workloads, while France, Belgium and Portugal enforce right-to-disconnect laws outside working hours.

The economic impact is significant. An ETUI study found that stress-related depression and heart conditions cost the European Union more than €100 billion annually, with employers carrying most of the financial burden.

“When anxiety or depression becomes severe, it can be too late,” Azzi warned. “People leave their jobs, and that’s why prevention is essential.”

A major scientific study has raised fresh concerns about the impact of tattoo inks on the body’s immune system, suggesting that the pigments used to create tattoo designs may interfere with how the body responds to disease and vaccination.

Researchers at the Institute for Research in Biomedicine at the Università della Svizzera italiana (USI) examined the toxicity of pigments used in the three most common tattoo colours: black, red and green. The study, published in the journal PNAS, is being described by the team as the most extensive investigation yet into how tattoo inks interact with immune cells.

The scientists found that pigment does not remain confined to the skin. Instead, particles travel through the body and collect in immune tissues, where they can persist for years. Once inside these tissues, the ink triggers cell damage. Macrophages — immune cells responsible for clearing foreign substances — are unable to break down the pigment, leading to swelling and prolonged strain on the immune system.

Pigments used in red and black tattoos caused the strongest reactions in laboratory tests.

When the researchers examined tattooed mice, they recorded rapid movement of pigment to the lymph nodes, where it continued to accumulate for at least two months. The altered immune activity appeared to affect how the animals responded to vaccines. In tests, the mice showed a weaker response to COVID-19 vaccines after tattooing, although the same pigments appeared to strengthen the response to a UV-inactivated flu vaccine.

Scientists stressed that more work is needed to confirm these findings in humans and across a wider range of vaccines. The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) is conducting separate research into possible long-term risks, including links between tattoo pigments, the immune system, and cancers such as lymphomas.

Researchers note that many pigment particles are extremely small, allowing them to circulate beyond the dermis, the layer of skin where tattoos are placed. This raises the possibility that exposure is not limited to the area of the tattoo.

Tattooing has become increasingly common, especially in Europe and the United States, where up to 40 percent of adults under 40 have at least one tattoo. IARC has said that the growth of the tattoo industry has turned pigment safety into a rising public health concern.

Tattoo ink can contain up to 100 chemical substances. Black ink usually contains carbon-based pigments, while coloured designs often rely on industrial pigments originally meant for plastics or paints. Europe introduced new rules in 2022 under its REACH chemical safety regulation to bring stricter oversight to ingredients used in tattoo inks.

With tattoo popularity rising worldwide, scientists say understanding these biological effects is becoming increasingly important.

US health authorities have issued an alert urging people to stop using specific models of Abbott Diabetes Care’s glucose monitoring sensors after the company linked the devices to seven deaths and hundreds of serious injuries around the world.

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said this week that select batches of the FreeStyle Libre 3 and FreeStyle Libre 3 Plus sensors may report falsely low glucose readings. Incorrect readings over time can prompt people with diabetes to make unsafe treatment choices, including taking excessive carbohydrates or delaying necessary insulin doses.

In its notice, the FDA said such decisions could pose major health risks and may lead to severe injury or death.

The sensors track glucose in the fluid beneath the skin, providing continuous updates that are transmitted to a user’s phone or reader. Abbott said the alert covers around three million sensors distributed in the United States, all from a single production line. Around half of those units have either been used or are past their expiry date.

FreeStyle Libre 3 was approved for use in Europe in 2020, and the sensors are sold in several major markets including Germany, Spain, Italy, France, the Netherlands and the UK. As of 14 November, Abbott reported seven deaths and 736 serious incidents tied to the affected sensors worldwide.

The company said it has contacted all customers and healthcare partners about the issue and confirmed that it has identified and corrected the fault in the production batch linked to the problem.

The FDA is advising users to dispose of affected sensors immediately. Impacted devices include FreeStyle Libre 3 sensors with model number 72080-01 and unique device identifiers 00357599818005 and 00357599819002. The alert also covers FreeStyle Libre 3 Plus sensors with model numbers 78768-01 and 78769-01 with identifiers 00357599844011 and 00357599843014.

Abbott has directed consumers to a dedicated website, FreeStyleCheck.com, where they can check whether their device is part of the affected lot and request a replacement at no charge. The company stressed that no other FreeStyle Libre products are involved in the warning.

Regulators said the alert will remain in place until they are satisfied that all potentially problematic sensors have been removed from circulation and replaced with updated units.