World Obesity Day published free resources for employers who wish to promote employee health. These guides can be used as part of the HR material to open up a discussion on how to create a healthy work environment.
In particular, the documents help the employers to:
- Understand obesity as a disease and risk factor for other diseases
- Use best-practice to build healthy workplace environments
- Communicate with employees effectively and sensitively on this topic
The impact of Covid-19 exacerbated a situation that was already urgent. In fact, people that live with obesity have a higher risk of poor outcomes from Covid-19. The new work-from-home environment can make it even harder to manage and prevent overweight, increased stress levels have an impact on sleep and eating patterns, additional pressure on people to “get in shape” during the lockdown, changes in routine, decreased access to healthy food, addition obligations (such as childcare), increased screen time, etc.
Moreover, the material provides useful information about deconstructing the stigma and bias related to this disease which damages not only the physical but also the mental wellbeing of people.
Obesity is a risk factor for cardiovascular diseases (mainly heart disease and stroke), which are one of the leading causes of death; in line with this point of view, YOUNG50 through the integration with other health-promoting programs, like implementing physical activity, healthy eating, healthy ageing, aims to work towards the improvement of many cardiovascular risk factors.
More info: https://www.worldobesityday.org/resources/entry/guidance-for-employers-healthy-workplaces
