We all know that we should be living a balanced healthy lifestyle – however, this can be difficult when you spend half of your waking hours at the workplace on a typical working day.
Unfortunately, you body does not distinguish between being at work or home and, as such, its important that we extend healthy living to both work time and home time.
Building healthy behaviours into your work routine can have a significant impact on your overall health.
What are the risks of an unhealthy lifestyle?
There are a number of personal and business risks associated with living an unhealthy lifestyle.
The most obvious is developing poor health conditions which can affect your quality of life.
However, living an unhealthy lifestyle can also result in increased stress or lack of energy; this can lead to lower productivity and absenteeism.
Why is health and wellbeing important at work?
As mentioned above your body, and its functions, does not distinguish between being at home or at work.
Resultantly the negative impacts of unhealthy living will still apply if you live a healthy lifestyle outside of work but do not carry these habits into your workplace.
A healthy workforce is often said to be a happy workforce. Avoiding the negative impacts associated with an unhealthy lifestyle can help to avoid the similarly associated negative impacts that comes with that.
Furthermore, promoting good health and wellbeing in the workplace can help to build a positive workplace culture, improve staff morale and increase worker fulfilment which is linked to increased productivity and job satisfaction.
How do you promote health and wellbeing in the workplace?
Given that health and wellbeing is a multi-factorial phenomenon applying to mental and physical health there are a number of different methods businesses can apply to help promote a health balanced lifestyle.
Common methods include:
- Develop an employee wellbeing policy, this can be extended or run alongside a mental health policy
- Provide flexible working arrangements where reasonable if working arrangements permit
- Risk assess workplace ergonomics, completing display screen assessments and workstation ergonomic assessments
- Provide clean and well-lit, comfortable working environment with access to welfare and sanitary facilities
- ‘Stop smoking’ programmes.
- Allow time for staff socialisation, arranging team days and providing spaces to take a break
- Provide discounted gym memberships
- Cycle-to-work schemes
The above are a drop in the ocean to the number of measures that can be taken, but give a flavour of common measures that help promote balanced health lifestyles within the workplace.
How can WA Management help?
WA Management offer an Alcohol and Drug Awareness online training course, suitable for both employers and employees, along with a Healthy Living online training course to help employees take steps to leading a healthier lifestyle.
Alcohol and Drug Awareness & Healthy Living are essential tools in improving health and wellbeing.
Make sure you don’t miss out on our 10% off deal on these courses, available until the end of January. Simply enter the code ‘substance10’ at checkout to save!
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