5 Real Health Risks Of Your Desk Job

5 Real Health Risks Of Your Desk Job

It’s true that your desk job could really be killing you and here’s how:

Sitting is Poison For Your Heart

One of the scariest health risks your desk job could pose to you is the shocking negative impact it has on your cardiovascular system.

Sitting for more than 50% of your day increases the risk of cardiovascular-related episodes by 149% as well as the risk of death because of a cardiovascular episode by 50%

Cardiovascular diseases such as high blood pressure, coronary heart disease, cerebrovascular disease, peripheral arterial disease, rheumatic heart disease, congenital heart disease, DVT (Deep Vein Thrombosis) and Pulmonary Embolism are a very real (and serious) risk of a sedentary job.

The inactivity combined with the poor circulation caused by sitting all day has a corrosive and inflammatory effect on your arteries and heart and if you combine that with stress and takeouts or foods that clog your arteries, you’re creating the perfect conditions for the rapid deterioration of your cardiovascular system, which could be fatal sooner or later, if left unaddressed.

The Solution

  • Break up your time spent at the desk with spurts of brisk walking or squats, both of these exercises are incredible for improving circulation.
  • To start you can take a 10-minute active break for every 40 minutes you sit down.
  • Try to change positions at least every 10 minutes while sitting and elevate your legs when in a sedentary position.
  • Get up and walk around the office as much as possible.
  • Avoid unhealthy foods and focus on a healthy diet rich in nutrients and minerals.
  • Actively practice stress relieving techniques daily while at the office.
  • For it to be effective you will need to make it a permanent lifestyle change.

5 Real Health Risks Of Your Desk Job tie shoes

Varicose Veins

Varicose Veins are an eyesore at best and at worst they can cause immense pain, Deep Vein Thrombosis, a clotting disorder that can result in a pulmonary embolism (which is when a blood clot gets lodged in the arteries that lead to the lungs). This can block oxygen consumption through the blood and can cause serious organ or even brain damage or ultimately death.

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In essence, varicose veins are much deadlier than they appear.

Leading causes of varicose veins are obesity (which we’ll discuss next) genetics, inactivity, and poor circulation.

A desk job accounts for two of these 4 factors, 3, if you’re overweight.

If you do the math, your 9-to-5-er  increases the likelihood of developing varicose veins between 50 and 75%

Those are crazy odds.

The Solution

Varicose veins can severely affect your daily life if you suffer from it.

But one of the most important keys to preventing varicose veins is to maintain adequate circulation throughout the entire body but especially the legs and feet.

You should always wear shoes and clothes that fit correctly and don’t restrict blood flow.

Wearing compression stockings at the office may seem silly, but if you have a particularly rough day that you need to just power through and you can’t take as many active breaks as you should, the value of a good pair of compression stockings cannot be overstated.

If you already suffer from swollen and twisted veins, leg pain or any other symptoms of varicose veins, you should seek treatment as soon as you possibly can.

5 Real Health Risks Of Your Desk Job measure waist

Weight-gain

Apart from the fact that prolonged sitting, without active breaks, will undo 80% of the health benefits that regular exercise does for your body, it actually initiates the hormones that make you fat.

Within two weeks of starting a desk job, there is a shocking elevation in plasma triglycerides, bad cholesterol (bad for your heart), and almost an immediate rise in your bodies resistance to insulin.

When your body’s insulin sensitivity is decreased, it results in malabsorption of sugar and the excess sugar is left in the bloodstream (as glucose), wreaking havoc on your body whilst piling on the pounds.

The Solution

  • Make sure to take extra care of your overall health.
  • Incorporate strength training into your workout routine as building muscle will aid your body’s insulin sensitivity, make your workouts more effective and will let you burn more calories throughout the day.
  • Follow a healthy diet.
  • Get enough sleep.
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5 Real Health Risks Of Your Desk Job eat food

Poor Posture

Poor posture can lead to all sorts of ailments, including but not limited to severe back pain, neck pain and stiff hips.

It’s not only that we’re hunching over when we’re not conscious of how we sit, but also chairs that don’t offer proper support or aren’t adjustable to suit your body type.

Luckily, this one is quite simple to fix, simple but not easy.

The Solution

  • Make sure your chair supports your lower back.
  • Push your butt back in the chair as far is it can go.
  • Straighten your back but relax your shoulders.
  • Chair height should be adjusted so your feet are always flat on the floor and your knees are level to or lower than your hips.
  • Your elbows should bend at a 90-degree angle.
  • Focus on keeping proper posture throughout the day.
  • Do some yoga to help strengthen your body to support the correct posture.
  • Ladies, you need to make sure that your bra fits and supports your bust properly or it could cause a permanent slouch.

Depression

Inactivity has been believed to be a major risk factor for depression for quite some time now, but if you pair that with a stressful, unstimulating environment, overall job dissatisfaction and any other predisposition to depression you have a serious problem on your hands.

Depression is a very serious mental health condition and should not be shrugged off just because people believe that a job shouldn’t bring you joy. (it should though)

The Solution

Regardless of the severity of your condition, you will have to take immediate steps to treat it and to increase your quality of life from here on forward.

It is important to seek help even (and especially) when you feel like you don’t really want it.

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