Common Health Problems Experienced in the Office (And How to Fix Them)

By TGP / Categories: Healthy Lifestyle

There are people who think that injury and illness only happens to those who live a more daring, active life. What they don’t realise is even if you’re sitting on the desk you’re at risk of a lot of health problems. Most people know well enough to keep medicine for headache and fever in the office, but most health complications require a change in lifestyle and in work ethics to be cured or prevented altogether.

Here are some of the most common health problems that you might already be experiencing, and the ways you can prevent them.

Eye Strain

eye strain

Let’s say you’ve been staring at the computer for more than 4 hours, your eyes are hurting, your vision gets blurry, and you’re getting a headache. If this sounds familiar, you might be developing eye strain. The best thing to do is to take breaks away from your computer and look at other things than laptop or phone screens. Eye glasses that protect your eyes from UV can help. Make sure to drink plenty of water to avoid getting a headache.

Other ways to prevent vision problems due to eye strain is to use a bigger font size so that you can sit far from the screen. Adjust the light so that it illuminates from the side, never from behind to reduce glare.

Carpal Tunnel Syndrome

Acute pain in a women hand. Isolation on a white background

Some people may not know this, but motion that it repeated over and over again can cause pain or injury. If your work is a typing-heavy job, then you are at risk of carpal tunnel syndrome. This isn’t just a simple pain in the wrist. Carpal Tunnel Syndrome is a problem with the nerves of the wrist that can cause it to feel numb, tingly, and weak. Rest your wrist once in a while, and make sure to relieve tension by doing wrist exercises.

Take note that you’re not supposed to put your wrist and rest them on top of the pads that you see on mouse pads nowadays. Its purpose is guide you with how high your wrist should be.

Lumbar Strain

lumbar strain

Spending large amounts of time sitting on your desk in chairs that are not ergonomically good for you will cause big problems for your back. Back pains and bad posture are just the beginning, too much stress on your spine will cause long term problems. To avoid this, you should take regular breaks from sitting down, every 2 hours if you can. Try walking around the office so you can stretch your legs. Maintain good posture by not slouching and adjusting your chair and screen so you’re not stooping down just to work.

If you can, try suggesting chairs that are ergonomically good for the body to your boss.

Heart Disease and Stress

heart disease

One of the causes of heart disease is inactivity. True enough, when you spend the entire day sitting in front of your computer and then spend the night resting on the sofa, there is no room to do any kind of activity. Stress also contributes to heart ailments.

Other than making time for proper exercise, you should make sure that you do not reach your stress levels. Doing something physical like jogging or going to the gym twice or thrice a week will not only help you prevent heart ailments, but can also help you reduce your stress level. Companies can start programs and initiatives to advocate for health and wellness.

Common Illness

1st general photo

You write on your desk, eat on it, maybe even sleep or sit on it, but did you know that it is also a cause for getting sick? Studies show that illnesses are spread more rapidly in offices. This is because the bacteria accumulated on your desk alone are 400 times more than on the toilet.

Make sure that your desk is cleaned properly. Anti-bacterial wipes are very handy if you need to wipe your desk after lunch. Speaking of lunch, make sure that your hands are also clean before and after you eat because your hands can also transport possible illnesses.

Companies have a responsibility to make sure that their employees are in tip top shape to get the job done, and employees have a responsibility to themselves. Health problems don’t occur with age, it can manifest anytime, anywhere. Take note of these things and create a plan that will keep you healthy, wealthy, and bright!

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