A HEALTHY WORKPLACE
Feel good at work
It is important to feel good, both physically and mentally. Half of our waking hours are spent at work, so it’s critical to ensure that we work as smart as possible. To move and work with the right equipment that makes the body feel good. For even though we Swedes are extremely health conscious and among those who exercise the most, we also sit the most. We sit at work, in the car and on the sofa, on average 10 hours a day. And this is despite our bodies actually be designed to move and be active.
Why is activity and movement also important at the office?
Technical solutions mean that we move less and less. We shop online, we drive the car to work and chauffeur our children, we use machines for household chores and gardening. Apps even mean that we do not need to walk to the parking ticket machines but can remain sitting in the car when we pay. At work we sit at our computers and in spite of the fact that many of us have height adjustable desks we do not use them. But still we sit at work, in the car and on the sofa.
We are facing a major problem.
When you sit the body enters a state of rest, which has an influence on blood vessels and the metabolism – blood fats and blood sugar increase resulting in an increase risk of being overweight, diabetes type 2 and high blood pressure. Illnesses that in turn can result in premature death and dementia. “Sitting sickness” is the 4th most common cause of premature death in high-income countries (according to WHO).
The StandUp mat relieves pressure when you stand up
Many already have a height adjustable desk at their workplace, but about 80% still sit and work. This is because we are unaccustomed to standing, that you get a pain in the legs, back, feet, etc. Furthermore, we have inferior knowledge of the benefits of standing and the dangers of sitting too much. If you work standing up for long periods, it’s a good idea to take the weight off your feet with a workplace mat. The StandUp workplace mat is specially produced to distribute your weight evenly between your feet, and help you to stand up for longer without getting tired.
StandUp desk
StandUp Desk can be vertically adjusted manually and features a convenient size making it very easy to position. You don’t need to take electrical outlets into consideration and there are no cables on the floor. The desk is suitable for both home offices and conventional workplaces. You raise and lower the desk with a gas spring that is controlled by a lever on the side.
Stand up and work. Live longer, feel better and lose weight.
Research shows how you can burn up hundreds of extra calories every day. All you need to do is to stand up at work – instead of sitting down. It is a fact that, in terms of calories consumed, standing for three hours each working day for a month equates to running a full marathon. In addition to the pure health benefits, perhaps you may also lose a few kilos into the bargain.
75% of all computer users have experienced pain due to their posture while in front of their computer
Surveys indicate that screen time is on the rise and it is therefore even more important to have the right working posture when sitting at your computer to avoid injury. Choosing the right ergonomic mouse is one of the most important preventive actions against RSI. Try to achieve a posture where your arms can be held together close to the body and the distance between the mouse and keyboard is as short as possible to prevent unnecessary muscular tension.
The most common musculoskeletal disorders when working at a computer are:
- Lower back pain and lumbago
- Overworked wrists
- Mouse arm/tennis elbow
- Shoulder pain
- Pain between the shoulder blades
- Tension headache
- Wry neck
Make sure you have the correct working position in front of the computer
- Use a centred mouse. Work centred with the upper arms close to the body and the hands in front of you. Switch as much as possible between your left and right hands.
- A vertical mouse may also be comfortable, so make sure you have the opportunity to switch between right and left hands.
- Offload with a forearm support, keep the arms close to the body and at a 90° angle, let the forearms rest against the support.
- A wrist support may be an option, it helps to straighten the angle of the wrist.
- A document holder means that the document can be angled to a more comfortable position, for example, to avoid reflections.
- Place it between the keyboard and screen to avoid unnecessary head movement
Health is significantly affected by the type of lighting at your workplace.
Incorrectly designed light means, among others, you feel tired, sleep poorly and get headaches and tension in the neck and back. This is because the body tries to compensate for poor light conditions by tensioning the muscles. Research shows that the right lighting makes us more efficient, more wide-awake and gives fewer days lost through sickness. Thus individual lighting is important, different ages require e.g. different brightness. Depending on the task, you may also need different light temperatures, from cold to warm light. The intensity of illumination should be possible to adjust to the ambient light and be possible to adjust individually. Asymmetrical lighting provides targeted light distribution, for the best light, the lamp should be placed to the left for a right-handed person and vice versa.
