The health risk of improper sitting at your workplace

For many years, Jessica Boniface* (45), a subeditor at a local newspaper, complained of back and neck pain. Doctors later diagnosed her with spinal degeneration, high blood pressure and obesity.

Jessica, an experienced journalist, says that for the many years, she worked twelve hours a day and her job entailed remaining seated for a long time.

When Your Health caught up with her recently, she was seated at her office, leaning on a back support material that was fitted in her chair.

She was busy at work—her eyes fixed on a huge iMac desktop erected on a neat working table.

However, underneath the nice looking modern working table, was a bad reality that Jessica opened up to Your Health.

“Nowadays I have to wear an orthopaedic belt to minimize the health hazards that my chair can cause to me,” said Jessica as she curtain-raised a story of how she has to live on doctors’ instructions.

This, she said, happened after realising that prolonged hours of sitting in the office may have led her to some health problems.

“I sit for long hours and I have learnt how to cope with that,” emphasised Jessica during the interview.

“Every day, whenever I arrive at the office, I usually spend up to ten minutes examining which chair I should use for the day. I often end up picking any. You see, one is worse than the other,” she said.

Jessica is now on life-long medication to treat high blood pressure and according to her doctors, the heart problem she was diagnosed with could be an indirect consequence of her working environment.

Is Jessica’s workplace really spine-friendly?

Your Health talked to Jessica’s Human Resource Manager (name withheld) who said the issue of sitting, working hours and suitability of the chairs at his company is sensitive.

Commenting on whether the chairs used by his employees fit the standards of the International Labour Orgnisation (ILO), the HR said, “I cannot say that they do, but once we receive a complaint from an employee about his/her chair, we respond accordingly.”

When asked how often his office receives complaints from employees, the HR said, “Very rarely.” Six months might elapse without a complaint, he added.

Occupational health experts have always warned about the hazards of prolonged and inappropriate sitting in offices. However, this doesn’t end up as an individual problem.

Most offices face occupational health challenges that have gone unaddressed for many years, researchers say.

Prolonged and inappropriate sitting in offices is lately being discussed among the researchers—with many of their studies suggesting it can raise the risk of obesity, heart disease and even premature death.

A study published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine last year estimated that sitting for more than 3 hours daily is responsible for around 430,000 of all-cause deaths over 54 countries.

Experts take on health risks associated with prolonged sitting hours

Dr Peter Kisenge, a cardiologist at the Jakaya Kikwete Cardiac Institute (JKCI), (he did not participate in the study), argues that there are a lot of studies conducted that show the relationship between prolonged and inappropriate sitting posture and the risk of heart attack and blood pressure.

He says, “When you sit for a long time, your heart becomes less effective and the risk of heart attack and blood pressure may increase.”

Dr Kisenge advices people to engage in physical exercises to improve their quality of life and beat off the likelihood of developing high blood pressure.

Another study published in International Journal of Obesity estimated that for every extra hour a person sits, after five hours of being sedentary, may increase the waistline by almost an inch and ups the risk of heart disease by 0.2 per cent.

Dr Boaz Mkumbo, a medical doctor who specialises in nutrition in Mwanza Region, says prolonged sitting may contribute to being obese, although he cautions, “Obesity is typically a diet problem.”

“Although it contributes to someone’s obesity, prolonged sitting is not a problem in itself, the problem lies in the diet people take, how many calories our bodies burn is key,” says Dr Boaz.

Aesthetics of healthy sitting

Dr Bryson Mcharo, an Orthopaedic Surgeon at Muhimbili Orthopaedic Institute (MOI) says that for a person who sits in an inappropriate posture, it’s the back and neck of that person that bears the brunt of the damage caused by sitting.

“People who sit inappropriately and for prolonged hours are at risk of developing herniated disks, lower back pain, and permanent muscular imbalances in the neck and shoulders,” says Dr Mcharo.

He says that in most cases, he advices workers to stand up after sitting for at least an hour and walk around the office for a few minutes.

He also advices the use of an orthopaedic chair, a special designed chair to provide your spine and skeletal system with the best possible support, which can provide a number of benefits for workers who need a boost for their back.

Dr Mashili Fredrick, an expert in how the human body functions—physiology—says for one to remain healthy, one must maintain a natural curvature of the back-bone while sitting.

“We are supposed to sit upright without bending forward or backward. This is called sitting at 90 degrees,” says Dr Mashili, a physiologist from the Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences (Muhas).

In its Health and Safety at Work Regulations of 2003, the International Labor Organisation (ILO) describes the basic principles— the ergonomics —to be observed by an employer in ensuring a healthy workplace. Among other things is section 15(1)(a) on the postural requirements of the worker.

But according to an Ergonomics Inspector at the Tanzania’s Occupational Safety and Health Authority (OSHA) , Ms Angelina John, most offices in the country do not satisfactorily follow the regulations.

She told Your Health that she has encountered many complaints from workers who say their offices do not comply with the required ergonomic standards as stipulated by the ILO.

“Many workers also have low level of awareness when it comes to a healthy sitting etiquette and convenience at workplace,” says Ms John.

Section 16 (1) of the ILO regulations states that if a task can be effectively performed while seated, an ergonomically well-designed seat/chair shall be provided to a worker for use.

Ms John describes the suitable chair as one with wheels so that it can allow a worker to rotate, it must be adjustable so that a worker can be able to increase or decrease a size according to his/her height, the chair must have an adjustable back support and soft and adjustable hand support.

And for a suitable table, Ms John says, “It must, first of all, fit with the chair. It must have maximum height such that a chair can be entered towards it easily.”

“The table must also be carved, instead of a sharp edge since they may disturb blood veins leading to numbness,” she says.

The positioning of the computer is also important. It is supposed to be placed at a right angle or away from the windows and task lights.

“A poorly positioned monitor could introduce awkward and uncomfortable postures which can eventually lead to a painful postural disorders and eyestrain,” says Ms John.

There must also be adjustable footrests and making sure that all tools a worker needs to perform their tasks must be as near as possible so that it will not disturb them.

According to Ms John, people who do the procurement for office furniture must be made aware of what is the recommended work equipment in order to avoid severe health problem to the workers.

During inspection, OSHA does not reach as many offices as possible due to human resource constraints—especially the lack of enough experts in ergonomics.

The authority has only six ergonomic inspectors in the country working in six zones of Dar es Salaam, Mbeya, Arusha, Mwanza, Dodoma and Mtwara.

The ergonomics inspection itself started officially in 2015 by being included in the compliance inspection--something that never existed before in Tanzania, says Ms John.

Ergonomics inspection is also carried out once a year. Where an office is found to violate the standards of workstations, a notice is issued by OSHA within a particular timeframe for the office to work on the matter.

Upon the failure to work on it as instructed, a penalty may be instituted to the office in question. Another problem is that not many offices fall under OSHA especially when it comes to ergonomics monitoring.