Workplace and Obesity

Workplace and Obesity

Obesity and related conditions have risen to epidemic levels in the US and around the globe. The causes for this are numerous and included among the list are increases in automation and labor-saving devices that have resulted in a change in the way we live and work. Many workplaces are now sedentary settings and often provide easy access to energy-dense food and beverages. As a result, workplaces are contributing to the obesity epidemic.

Obesity has been linked to numerous chronic diseases including cardiovascular disease, hypertension, dyslipidemia, type 2 diabetes, stroke, osteoarthritis and some cancers.^[1]

Concern about the economic burden associated with obesity is growing. Obesity drives up costs for employers and is associated with increased absenteeism, disability, injury and healthcare claims. Furthermore, when compared to other industrialized countries, the US has the highest per capita costs for health care and also as a percentage of Gross domestic product, yet ranks in the bottom quartile for life expectancy and infant mortality.^[6]

While the stated goal of workplace wellness programs is to improve employee health, many US employers have turned to them to help alleviate the impact of enormous increases inhealth insurance premiums^[3] experienced over the last decade. Some employers have also begun varying the amount paid by their employees for health insurance based on participation in these programs.^[4] Cost-shifting strategies alone, through high copayments or coinsurance may create barriers to participation in preventive health screenings or lower medication adherence.hypertension.^[5]

One of the reasons for the growth of healthcare costs to employers is the rise in obesity-related illnesses brought about by lack of physical activity, another is the effect of an aging workforce and the associated increase in chronic health conditions driving higher health care utilization. In 2000 the health costs of overweight and obesity in the US were estimated at $117 billion.^[6] Each year obesity contributes to an estimated 112,000 preventable deaths.^[7] An East Carolina University study of individuals aged 15 and older without physical limitations found that the average annual direct medical costs were $1,019 for those who are regularly physically active and $1,349 for those who reported being inactive. Being overweight increases yearly per person health care costs by $125, while obesity increases costs by $395.^[6] A survey of North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services employees found that approximately 70 cents of every healthcare dollar was spent to treat employees who had one or more chronic conditions, two thirds of which can be attributed to three major lifestyle risk factors: physical inactivity, poor diet, and tobacco use.^[8] Obese employees spend 77 percent more on medications than non-obese employees and 72 percent of those medical claims are for conditions that are preventable.^[2]

According to Healthy Workforce 2010 and Beyond, a joint effort of the US Partnership for Prevention and the US Chamber of Commerce, organizations need to view employee health in terms of productivity rather than as an exercise in health care cost management. The emerging discipline of Health and Productivity Management (HPM) has shown that health and productivity are “inextricably linked” and that a healthy workforce leads to a healthy bottom line. There is now strong evidence that health status can impair day-to-day work performance (e.g., presenteeism) and have a negative effect on job output and quality.^[2] Current recommendations for employers are not only to help its unhealthy population become healthy but also to keep its healthy population from becoming sick. Employers are encouraged to implement population-based programs including health risk appraisals and health screenings in conjunction with targeted interventions.^[5]