Story highlights Women who worked long hours had a 65% greater risk of diabetes, a new study says

Men who worked long hours did not see a similar risk

(CNN) Here's a good reason for women to work less, ask for a raise or get their partners to pick up around the house more: If women work fewer hours, it'll lower their risk of diabetes, according to a study published Monday in the journal BMJ Open Diabetes Research & Care.

Researchers looked at data from 7,065 Canadians who were tracked over 12 years. What they found was that women who consistently worked 45 hours or more a week had a 63% greater risk of diabetes compared with those who worked between 35 and 40 hours a week.

The effect was only slightly reduced when smoking, exercise, alcohol intake and body-mass index were taken into account.

Men who worked longer hours, on the other hand, did not face an increased risk of diabetes.

It's unclear why there is a gender difference in this risk, but it may involve what women do with their time off.