Obesity and Absenteeism: An Epidemiologic Study of 10,825 Employed Adults

Tucker, Larry A.; Friedman, Glenn M.

doi:10.4278/0890-1171-12.3.202

Cited by 105 publications

(70 citation statements)

References 21 publications

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“…These findings are relevant to managers of health care systems for at least three main reasons; healthy staff attend work more regularly 28 , they counsel more regularly on healthy lifestyle habits and they do it more effectively. 6,15,16 The findings can help managers to target the groups of physicians who themselves are most in need of PA and health-related promotion.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Physical activity level and lifestyle-related risk factors from Catalan physicians

Pardo¹,

McKenna²,

Mitjans³

et al. 2012

Preventive Medicine

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Background: Physicians' own Physical Activity (PA) and other health-related habits influence PA promotion. The present study identifies the PA level, according to the current PA recommendations and other health-related habits of physicians from the Catalan Medical Council. Methods: 2,400 physicians (30 to 55 years) were randomly selected to generate a target sample of 800; each received a self-administered questionnaire identifying medical specialization, work setting, health self-perception, body mass index (BMI), PA and smoking habits. Results: 762 physicians responded (52% female). Almost one in two (49.3%) exercised sufficiently, nearly all selfperceived good health, while 80.5% were non-smokers. Almost 6 in 10 males reported overweight or obesity (56.9%) versus 18.2% of females. Active physicians dominated specific groups; (i) aged 45-55 years, (ii) specializing either in primary care or surgery, (iii) working in the private sector, (iv) BMI <25 kg/m 2 , (v) perceiving themselves in good health, or (vi) having free leisure time. Conclusions: Only half of Catalan physicians met current PA recommendations; male physicians were particularly at risk of overweight/obesity. Overweight and under exercise were associated with private workplaces and positive health perceptions, meaning that it is it is now possible to target inactive and/or overweight Catalan physicians in future interventions.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Physical activity level and lifestyle-related risk factors from Catalan physicians

Pardo¹,

McKenna²,

Mitjans³

et al. 2012

Preventive Medicine

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“…With regard to the relation between obesity and sick leave, our results are consistent with reports of previous studies showing a significant association between sick leave among male and female workers and obesity. 1,[17][18][19][20]46 Four of these studies were studying only global obesity 17,18,46 or only body fat distribution 19 in relation with sick leave. Moreover, they rely on either cross-sectional data, 19 self-reported or past sick leave, 17,18,20 and none of them make a distinction between short and long spells of sickness absence.…”

Section: Discussion Of the Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Obesity is also associated with poor psycho-social functioning: depression, anxiety, stress, poor coping as well as psychological problems [11][12][13][14][15] and poor quality of life, 3,16 resulting in functional impairment and loss of working capacity. 17 Some authors studied the relation between sick leave and obesity 1,4,[17][18][19][20] and found a significant positive association. However, most of these studies do not take into account the body fat distribution; most are based on a crosssectional design and/or are based on self-reported sick leave.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Obesity, body fat distribution and incidence of sick leave in the Belgian workforce: the Belstress study

et al. 2004

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OBJECTIVES:In many studies, obesity has been associated with morbidity or mortality, but only a few have studied the relation between obesity and sick leave. Our aim is to analyse the independent effects of both adiposity and body fat distribution in relation to the 1-y incidence of sick leave in a large cohort of male and female workers covering a variety of occupations, taking into account a wide range of socio-demographic, behavioural and bioclinical variables. DESIGN AND SETTING: The baseline survey of the Belstress study was conducted in 25 companies across Belgium between 1994 and 1998. A cohort of 20 463 workers (15 557 males and 4906 females) aged 35-59 y was followed for absenteeism during 1 y. The 75th percentile of the distribution of the total annual sickness days was used as a cutoff to classify the workers with a high 1-y incidence rate of sick leave. The relation between sick leave and both obesity and body fat distribution assessed by the body mass index (BMI) and the waist circumference, respectively, was analysed by multivariate logistic regression models. RESULTS: Using a backward procedure based on the likelihood ratio, we found central abdominal fatness to be an independent predictor of sick leave in both genders (high sick-leave incidence and long spells), but not BMI. In men, the odds ratios was 1.31 (99% CI 1.12-1.52, Po0.0001) and in women it ranged from 1.32 (99% CI 1.03-1.70, P ¼ 0.005) to 1.47 (99% CI 1.14-1.90, Po0.0001). Two baseline covariables, respiratory problems and perceived health, are confounders or mediators. CONCLUSIONS: In this study, body fat distribution was associated with a high annual sick-leave incidence and long spells of sickness absence. If this link is reversible, employers may benefit from programs aiming at the prevention and treatment of central obesity.

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“…Obese children, like obese adult workers, have been reported to experience higher rates of absenteeism. 27 In a study involving nine Philadelphia public schools, obese children had rates of school absenteeism that were 20 percent greater than those of their non-obese classmates. 28 Indeed, elevated body mass index (BMI) was a stronger predictor of absenteeism than traditional risk factors of age, sex, race, and socioeconomic status.…”

Section: Lost Productivity From Childhood Obesitymentioning

confidence: 99%

Impact Of Childhood Obesity On Employers

et al. 2010

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The impact of childhood obesity on the workplace is not well understood. A study conducted for one large employer indicated that average per capita health insurance claims costs were as high as $2,907 in 2008 for an obese child and $10,789 for a child with type II diabetes. The average claims cost for children with type II diabetes actually exceeded the level of the average claims cost for adults with type II diabetes ($8,844). This paper reviews the evidence on the impact of childhood obesity on employers and discusses opportunities for business engagement-including two current examples of activities involving employers. E mployers are constantly challenged by competitive pressures to attract and retain employees and to control cost components that exhibit high rates of growth. The challenge often requires meeting increasing work-life needs of employees with dependent children. For example, between 1975 and 2008 the proportion of employed women with children under age eighteen grew from 47 percent to 71 percent.

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Obesity and Absenteeism: An Epidemiologic Study of 10,825 Employed Adults

Abstract: Obese employees tend to be absent from work due to illness substantially more than their counterparts.

Cited by 105 publications

References 21 publications

Physical activity level and lifestyle-related risk factors from Catalan physicians

Physical activity level and lifestyle-related risk factors from Catalan physicians

Obesity, body fat distribution and incidence of sick leave in the Belgian workforce: the Belstress study

Impact Of Childhood Obesity On Employers

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