- Do you spend most of your day sitting in an office?
- Can your office job be making you sick?
- Don’t let you office job ruin your health!
Your Office Job Maybe Destroying Your Body
The stress, long hours, and sedentary nature of your modern office job may be sucking the life out of you — literally.
Aside from the tight deadlines, bad food habits, and being cooped up with other people’s germs, plenty of things you do every day in the workplace are bad for you. The typical office environment can have real effects on your physical well-being and mental health.
- Sitting all day could shave years off your life.
Sitting for lengthy periods is terrible for your body. Aches and pains are the least of your problems — sitting too much can lead to an early death. You face a higher risk of muscular skeletal disorders, obesity, diabetes, cancer, heart disease and more, even if you work out regularly. Around 86% of American workers sit all day at work. Make sure you get up and stretch or walk around periodically.
2. Regularly slouching in your can chair lead to long-term illnesses.
If your job requires you to sit most of the day, it’s best if you get a sitting device that allows you to straighten your poor posture. If not, you’re contributing potential chronic, long-term problems — including arthritis and bursitis.
3. Skipping breakfast puts your body in a constant stressful state.
Always on the run and don’t have time to eat the most important meal of the day? Doing this consistently will put your body in a stressful state and disrupt your metabolism. People who don’t eat breakfast have a greater risk of high blood pressure, being overweight, and having heart issues compared to those who regularly eat within two hours of waking up. Have something in your pantry that you can eat on your way to work – a shake, granola bar, fruit, etc.
4. Regularly eating fast food for lunch will increase your risk of heart disease.
Most people who work in an office go out for an unhealthy lunch once in a while. Even the occasional indulgence has negative effects. A portion of fast food usually has around double the calories to another similar food of the same size. It also has a lot of oxidized fat, which increases the risk of heart disease. Pack you lunch! You can control what you eat and when you eat it. When you are not hungry, you can make better decisions and turn down that invitation to grab fast-food.
5. Motivational Meetings Depress People.
In order to get workers excited about the company’s mission, employers may host team-building exercises or motivational meetings.
But you know what? Forcing people to feel positive for something they’re unsure about can actually highlight how unhappy they are. That might make you even more depressed. So make sure you really need that meeting before you schedule it.
6. Recirculated, toxic air clogs your lungs.
The EPA calls it “Sick Building Syndrome.” The air inside a building can be up to 100 times dirtier than outside, and you’re exposed to a variety of unhealthy gases and chemicals. There are pollutants in the air conditioning, toxic particles, dangerous bacteria and mold all flying around, especially in buildings that aren’t well taken care of. Try to get out and get fresh air. Take a break or go for a walk at lunch.
7. Working for more than 10 hours per day may lead to a heart attack.
Research shows that people who work 10 hours or more every day have a 60% greater risk of cardiovascular problems, including heart attack and angina. If you have to work more than 10 hours, try to break it up. Leave your office for lunch – take your packed lunch to the cafeteria; go for a walk.
8. Endlessly staring at a computer screen harms your vision.
Even though computer screens don’t give off radiation, the strain from staring over long periods of time can cause harm to your vision, though many effects are temporary. Beyond that, you can also experience headaches and migraines. Look away from your computer. Take a break when you can.
9. Extreme boredom may make your more likely to die from heart disease or stroke.
Boredom can actually shorten your life. One study showed that those who complain of boredom are more likely to die young, and those who complain about it are much more likely to die from heart disease or stroke. It also puts you at higher risk for workplace accidents. Try to add some excitement to your day. Change it up. Decorate in a way that makes you feel good.
Bottom line? Many of these are tough on your body, regardless of whether you work from home or in an office. So no matter where you work, make sure you plan ahead, get up and get moving!!