Career And Health: Attitudes At Work That May Affect Your Health
Does it sound funny? Is it possible to have your health challenged by certain things you do at work? The answer is a resounding yes. It doesn’t sound funny by the way. There are attitudes at work that may affect your health.
I decided to write this piece because of the importance of health to your productivity either as an entrepreneur or a staff of an establishment. You should know that health is wealth.
I would have loved to point out the causes of bad attitudes in the workplace or the effects of negative attitude in the workplace or even examples of negative attitude in the workplace. These are important but they are all on the mental plane.
The concentration is your physical well being. There are things you do at work that affects your health. They may seem normal and usual but they have great implications for your health.
You may not see them as harmful but that is about to change. Attitudes at work that may affect your health do not sound very scary at first but you can be assured that their consequences are just as scary as anything you can imagine.
Related: Office Romance: How to minimize the dangers of workplace love and lust
Enough of these talks; there is nothing as important as incorporating positive attitudes in workers as a way of dealing with negative attitudes in the workplace.
Therefore, let us look at those attitudes at work that may affect your health so that you will find a way to curtail it and have a healthy career or work life.
Attitudes At Work That May Affect Your Health
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Workaholism
Workaholism can be compared to the “penny wise pound foolish” kind of life. in your bid to achieve everything in a day, week or month, you lose count of other important things in life.
Without a doubt, this is one of the attitudes at work that may affect your health. You will first struggle with maintaining a balance between your personal life and work life. It could lead to other physical health-related challenges.
Now, what you were rushing to achieve in a week could take several weeks to achieve or won’t be achieved by you pending on the severity of the case.
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Rotational shiftwork
As an employee who is involved in shift work either as part of the security cadre or whichever department you find yourself, you should know that practicing rotational shiftwork is not very good for you.
We advise that you stick to a particular shift pattern so that your body becomes regimented and adapted to it. According to Ketan Kapoor, “rotational shifts disrupt the body clock, leading to issues such as insomnia, dizziness and sleep deprivation. When a person works in a different shift every month or worse, every week, they are unable to follow a routine or exercise regimen, [which] worsens their health and well-being.”
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No breaks
Do you want to do the whole work at once? Continue. In the end, you will have yourself to blame very soon. You are going to come down with neck stain, stiff joints, muscle cramps, and headaches. The solution is that you need to be taking minor breaks to stretch yourself once in a while.
More so, as it is the standard practice, you need to take long breaks too. This ensures your physical well being and it refreshes the mind too.
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Poor eating habits
What eating habits have you inculcated at work? Poor eating habit is one of the attitudes at work that may affect your health. When you are down with strange working hours, you have busy schedules or your working on a project that is demanding and taxing, you may start mindless eating of snacks and junk food and you may even start skipping meals.
This does not always end well. Your body bears the brunt eventually. According to Gisela Bouvier, “Stress at work can lead to stress eating, which may significantly be indicative of overeating and usually not of nutrient-dense foods. Rather, snack foods or comfort foods can be mindlessly grazed on to help deal with stress or stay alert. However, eating during moments of stress can hinder satiety and when we have had enough.”
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Having to commute for long hours
How long does it take you to get your workplace? It is crucial to your health. In Lagos Nigeria, people wake up as early as 4 am to prepare for work. This can be attributed to the long distance they will cover and they traffic they will encounter.
Related: How to create a productive workplace in Nigeria
The implication is that there is a lack of sleep which can result in issues such as low immunity, increased irritation, and focusing troubles. You become unproductive and your physical health will be tested too. It is not really worth it if it can be avoided.
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Toxic environment
The environment plays a great role in the physical and mental well being of the workers.
According to Kapoor, “The workplace can make or mar a person’s health as an average person spends more than eight hours there every day. Spending a considerable time under stress and pressure can trigger excessive production of the stress hormone called cortisol, leading to health issues in the long run.”
Additionally, you might feel discouraged, anxious and even depressed, trapped in a company you don’t feel comfortable working for. If this is the case, it’s best to speak up or look elsewhere. No job is worth your health.
Conclusion
It is indeed necessary to work but it is more important to take care of your mental and physical health while you are working. You need to know the attitudes at work that may affect your health so that you will curtail it. Don’t forget that the true wealth is health.
