Workplace and Obesity

There is a new study out that adds another factor to the list of reasons why Americans keep adding weight to their waistlines.  In addition to reduced physical activity at home, poor eating habits, and genetics, the workplace is also an added boon to remaining fit.  In 1960, at least 50% of the workforce was involved in at least moderate physical activity at work, whether it be at a manufacturing plant or in the agriculture.  Since then, that percentage has dropped to 20% leaving 80% of the workforce with only light physical activity on the job today.  Even in the office environment 20 years ago, there was more physical activity involved.  What changed since then in the office?  The internet.  This fabulous addition to our lives has in effect reduced the amount of physical activity we get in the office during the day.  Now, office workers can rely on emails, wireless printing, and online meetings instead of face to face interactions in which they are required to get up from their desks and actually walk to another part of the office.  This new addition to the factors of American obesity makes absolute sense.  If American workers get only light to no physical activity during the day either at the office or at home, then combined with poor eating habits, it is no wonder that 1 in 3 of us are obese.  In addition to having increasingly sedentary jobs, more and more Americans are staying away from mass transit which includes more walking  versus driving in their own cars to work.  In essence, a lot of Americans from the time they wake up to the time they go to bed will do more sitting than walking throughout the day. 

The shift from moderate to light physical activity during the work day accounted for an average decline in 120 to 140 calories that were lost during the day due to that activity.  Instead, we are piling on those calories around our waists.   Since this is mostly a personal problem, Americans need to realize what is happening and make changes to their lifestyle to increase the amount of physical activity they get throughout the day so they can try and keep some of the weight off.  One could argue, as I am about to, that obesity is not just a personal problem.  It is also both a family and a social problem as well.  An obese person is more likely have health problems due to the added weight such as heart disease, diabetes, cholestorol issues, strokes, and a slew of other medical problems.  This directly affects their family in the fact that if they do succumb to one of the health problems, they are leaving their family behind at a much younger age than they should be.  Secondly, it is a social problem because as the number of obese people in America rises, the number of visits to doctors to "fix" their health problems increases as does our insurance premiums.  A sedentary lifestyle creates problems across the board and until American realize what effect they are having on those around them, it is not going to change. 

I completely understand the effect that physical activity can have on the body and weight gain.  Personally, I am a contractor that rarely sits down during the day.  The only time I really sit down is in the morning to write this blog and eat my breakfast, a half hour at lunch to eat, and then again at dinner and to relax afterwards for about an hour.  The rest of the time, I am on my feet working, burning calories, and yes eating a lot.  But the thing is, I don't just eat to eat.  I eat when I am hungry and stop eating when I am not.   People are continually amazed at the amount of food I can eat in one sitting without putting on one pound of weight.  The only reason I can do that is because I am active all day long.  Even when I was in college, not doing much physical activity for 5 years, I weighed 35 pounds more than I do now.  Why, because my eating habits were the same as they are now, yet the amount of physical activity during the day was greatly reduced.   If the amount of physical activity I did throughout the day were to reduce drastically, I would seriously need to reign in my eating habits because I can guarantee that the 35 pounds would come right back.    In addition, I  currently eat mostly healthy organic foods, which make a big difference.  I can't remember the last time that I went to a McDonalds, Burger King, or some other fast food joint.  If I went there now, I would probably be sick to my stomach.  At this point, I mostly eat home cooked meals, most of which are low in preservatives and additives.  But enough about me. 

There are changes that can be made in the workplace and some are suggested in the article I linked at the beginning of this post.  Some of these include standing work stations, movement of the office printer farther from desks requiring more walking, reduced use of the internet to communicate within the office, and even treadmill work stations where someone can walk while working on the computer.  (This last one could prove hazardous if someone is incapable of multi-tasking, I have an image of someone trying to send an email and suddenly flying backwards because they lost concentration.)  But there are changes that can be made in the workplace.  The biggest change that needs to be made is in the American mentality about obesity, the problems that it causes, and the solutions that need to be worked on.  People need to learn to take weight-loss one day at a time.  It needs to start with a little walking, then a little more, and so-on till the pounds start coming off.  There also needs to be changes made to eating habits.  While it is much easier to buy the prepared dinners at the grocery store, they are much less healthy than fresh cooked food.  The preservatives and additives that prepared foods have in them do not help in achieving a healthy lifestyle, one could argue that they are downright detrimental.  If you know someone who is obese, try working with them to increase the amount of physical activity they get throughout the day.  In general, lets all try to do a little extra walking today, and then a little more tomorrow.  It will only improve our overall health and help us to live longer, more fruitful lives.