Does Your Work Environment Increase Your Risk of Diabetes?

Your corporate wellness could have an impact on your risk of diabetes. This is according to a new study, published in the Journal of Occupational Health Psychology, which has found that the dynamics of the work force could greatly increase or decrease the chance of type 2 diabetes affecting your wellbeing.

The main culprits often cited for causing type 2 diabetes are obesity, high blood pressure, lack of physical activity and poor diet. The American Diabetes association notes that nearly 8% of Americans have diabetes, with 1.9 million new cases recorded in 2010 in people older than 20-years-old. Though this statistic accounts for both type 1 and type 2 diabetes, it is well established that type 2 diabetes is more prevalent – and on the rise. Therefore, researchers have begun to look for other culprits causing the disease, and deemed lack of workplace-support to be guilty.

For the study, the researchers examined the health and wellbeing of 5,843 male and female employees. This took place over three and a half years, in which participants had all visited a health centre for a physical check-up which had been sponsored by their respective companies. None of the participants had diabetes at the beginning of the study, but 182 of them had developed type 2 diabetes by the time they returned to get the follow up physical 41 months later.

When the researchers measured work force environments using an expanded job strain model, they found that employees who stated that they had a high level of social support within their jobs had a 22% reduced risk getting type II diabetes. The model used combines the factors of social support, amount of workload, and individual control over work pace and goals. The model also revealed that individuals who reported being over-or-under-worked had an increased risk for type II diabetes of 18%.

According to study leader Dr. Sharon Toker, of Tel Aviv University’s Faculty of Management in Israel, ‘You don’t want to see working populations have an increasing rate of diabetes. It’s costly to both employees and employers, resulting in absenteeism and triggering expensive medical insurance.’ The researchers advised employers to reconsider how they go about assigning work and promoting a healthier and more supportive environment.

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