Common issues of employee health

Millions of Americans are unhealthy. The majority of overweight individuals do not think they are overweight and they often insist they are healthy. Obesity and living sedentary lifestyles is a growing concern in many industries and it has caused health care costs to skyrocket out of sight. If you are not promoting an active workplace and your employees are living unhealthy lifestyles, it's time to focus on helping them to get healthy again. There is more than just obesity going on in your office and you need to figure out what you can do to make your employees healthier and happier in their jobs.

Carpal Tunnel
This is a huge concern for a lot of businesses that have employees sitting in front of computers and typing for 8 hours a day. Your employees may complain of wrist pain, numbness in the fingers, and general aching in the wrists and hands. While you cannot change the way the employees do their jobs you can help with the pain of carpal tunnel by providing your employees with hand rests. Another thing to do is to purchase wrist splints for your employees and computer typing gloves. These helpful aids will allow the blood to flow correctly through the hands and they can also help to position the wrists so that the employees will not have pinched nerves along with symptoms of carpal tunnel. Encourage employees to take periodic breaks, especially if they are starting to feel any pain in the wrists and hands. Teach them proper office ergonomics as posture and proper wrist positioning can improve the way in which they type and symptoms of carpal tunnel.

Obesity
Are you contributing to obesity in the workplace? Take a look around the office and the snack foods you are offering your staff. While they might not be happy to say goodbye to their favorite sodas and potato chips, you will help to at least prevent them from eating some processed foods. Consider replacing the unhealthy snacks with healthier choices like granola bars and water and 100% fruit juices. Let your employees know that you are trying to live a healthier lifestyle and encourage them to do the same. Do you have a spare room where you can place some exercise equipment for your employees to use? You need to try and help them as much as you can and providing a space for them to exercise is great way to let them see that you are trying to improve their health. Gym memberships are another wonderful way to encourage physical fitness in the office along with offering exercise time to your staff.

Allergies
While you may not pay much attention to allergies, they have a huge impact on the office. Allergies can cause employees to take time off as their eyes water and swell up or they simply have a hard time breathing. Allergies are caused from pollen and dust and they can cause your entire office to come down with symptoms that tend to mimic the common cold. Get fresh air into your office and you should also take a look at the cost of installing an air purifier in the office. While the cost may seem outrageous at first, you will see the benefit of clean, healthier air and your staff will thank you for it. Keep Benadryl and other over-the-counter allergy medications on hand for the employees that have an allergy attack and do not have any medications to help treat it.

There are several other employee health issues that you need to pay attention to. Walk around your office and get in touch with your staff to see how you can help them and to try and prevent larger issues from occurring.