Health Risks Of Working At Home

Office Furniture & Designing An Ergonomic Workspace

Working at home really can be a dream come true, whether you are given the chance to work remotely or even if you work as a freelancer on your own business. The freedom it grants you is fantastic!

But most home workers spend the majority of their day working at a PC and since you can end up working long hours, you might face very real health concerns…

Note For Employees:
Although this post is about working at home, any office worker should be aware of the health risks that come with spending too much time at a desk or computer, so if you want to avoid work related health problems, please read on!

The good news is that by working from home you have the opportunity to make your work space more ergonomic and hence more healthful. Here’s how:

Ergonomic Keyboard & Mouse

The simplest way to take the strain off your wrists and hands is to invest in a keyboard and mouse. Everyone knows what RSI is (right?) so I won’t go into details here, but investing in an ergonomic keyboard is well worth it.

If you occasionally get even a twinge or a slightly stiff wrist or fingers now, extrapolate that over your career for maybe another 10-20 years and you can see the potential damage.

Note For Employees:
The great thing about being an employee is that your employer has a legal responsibility for your health at work, so they may be prepared to invest in this stuff for you.

Dedicated Office Space

A lot of freelancers just work from a kitchen table or their living room, but this is terrible for postural health and productivity. Having a dedicated work-space is essential if you want to make the most of your working day. It only needs to be a corner of a room but it makes getting things done easier.

Here are some items of furniture to consider:

• Deep desk lets you sit in the desk more & gives extra elbow space
• Ergonomic office chair, so that you can sit up-right, no slouching!
• Standing desk, saves you buying a chair, more on that next…
• Additional shelving to keep your main desk area uncluttered

Arranging your office space isn’t difficult really, but it’s just a case of investing the time and money to doing it. Working long hours on the sofa with laptop on your knee isn’t good, so make the effort!

Standing Up Vs Sitting Down

The fact of the matter is that sitting down for more than 6 hours a day isn’t good for you, it’s not what our bodies were designed to do and even with the most ergonomic chair you can’t fight that.

My My Makeshift Stand-Up Desk, For When I’m Not Sitting on the Sofa!

Standing-up desks are becoming increasingly popular; as the name suggests they are simply desks that you stand at. Using a stand up desk for the first time does take some adjustment, it will make your feet ache, particularly if you are used to sitting all day.

The advantages outweigh the disadvantages though:

• You burn more calories by standing
• You can move and fidget more during the day
• It keeps your bone density and join mobility high
• Your posture may improve

Problems such as anterior pelvic tilt and rounded shoulders are very common in people who work long hours with computers (look them up, you may already have them) which can lead to back pain later in life, so making the move to standing is worth considering.

 

 

Moving Around

Of course too much of anything is a bad thing, so standing all day might have downsides too, but you don’t have to stand at your desk all day (particularly if you work from a laptop). Personally I never stand for more than 2 to 3 hours…

I will move around during my working day, so occasionally I will sit on the sofa for an hour or so (using a laptop tray of course!), then I will stand for a couple of hours, then I will go for a walk before sitting down to eat lunch and then I can either stand at my desk for a bit longer or move over to an arm chair.

The beauty is that you can sit with your feet up, slouch on the sofa or stand up as you feel. This variation is much more natural and much more comfortable rather than sitting in the same chair all day without moving.

Break Times

Of course the final thing to mention is taking a break. The idea of a break is to get away from your unnatural environment and have a change of pace. I take short breaks frequently throughout the day and offset what I have been doing.

So if I have been standing for too long, I will fall into my comfy chair and put my feet up for 10 minutes and just relax. If I have been sitting for most of the day though, I will get up, stretch off and go for a quick run.

Note For Employees:
Once again, your employer has a responsibility to protect your health at work; if you work long hours in front of a computer you should be given regular eye breaks as per government recommendations; If not, you have a right to complain and potentially take legal action if it goes that far.

Getting Used To It All

All of the advice above is a big adjustment for some people, but by standing more and moving more you will lose weight and get fitter and as you get used to moving more you will feel more comfortable doing so.

I used to spend all day either sat at a desk or in the living room, but now-a-days I stand and move all day and when I do sink into the armchair at the end of the day I appreciate it and feel so much more relaxed.

Related Articles

• 5 Affordable Stand Up Desks for Your Home Office Plus Buyers Guide
• Why It’s Healthier To Work Standing Up?