OBESITY AT WORK

Help us tackle obesity at work

One in four people at work are classed as obese. This might be you or it might be somebody you know.

Either way, being very overweight can lead to many serious health conditions such as type 2 diabetes, heart disease and even cancer.

Obesity can also affect your overall quality of life and lead to psychological problems.

At CPW we believe in talking openly about health issues both physical and mental. The more we talk about it, the more likely we are to reduce stigma and take action.

Tackling obesity should not be left at the office door. Many of us eat during work and we certainly spend a lot of our time there. Forward-thinking employers embrace their duty of care to look after the physical and mental wellbeing of their employees.

What is obesity?

Obesity is a term to describe being very overweight. It is very common in the UK. According to the NHS, obesity affects around one in every four adults.

Worryingly, it’s on the increase as our consumption of ultra-processed foods increases.

Measuring obesity?

The most common method of measuring obesity is using the body mass index (BMI).

For the majority of adults, a BMI of:

• 5 to 24.9 means you’re a healthy weight
• 25 to 29.9 means you’re overweight
• 30 to 39.9 means you’re obese
• 40 or above means you’re severely obese

You can work our yours here.

It’s not that accurate a measurement. If you are highly muscled such as a bodybuilder, sometimes it is useful to measure the waist circumference.

Men with a waist of 94cm (37in) or more and women with a waist of 80cm (about 31.5in) or more are more likely to develop obesity-related health problems.

What causes obesity?

The most common cause of obesity is from consuming more calories than you use through physical activities. This extra energy is normally stored as body fat.

Now, more than ever obesity is a problem because as a nation we have easier access to ultra-processed foods, and we spend more time sitting down at desks or at home or in the car.

There has been debate as to other underlying conditions such as underactive thyroid glands causing obesity but there is growing evidence within the medical community that this may not be the case.

How to tackle obesity at work and in the home

The best way to tackle obesity is to improve your diet and to a certain extent exercise regularly.

Here are some top tips to tackle obesity:

• Get some help from your GP or one of our registered nutritionists. They can prescribe a balanced, calorie-controlled diet that will suit you.
• Set up a weight loss group at work. Our healthcare professionals can give you guidance.
• Eat healthily at work. Think healthy snacks, and lunches.
• Spread the word not your waist. We can help with some great webinars and seminars such as Desk Snack Hack.
• Try some work-based physical activities.
• Book an appointment with one of our mental health therapists to get some psychological support.