Yahoo Finance Work from home warning: Future of ‘obesity, bad neck, hair loss and wrinkles’
The future of work from home looks bleak from this prediction, but there's way to stay healthy and work remotely.
An AI-generated image of what a work from home employee could look like in the future paints a confronting picture for many Australians now in remote or hybrid work environments.
Experts from the health and psychology field collaborated with DirectlyApply to create Susan - a “visual representation of the remote worker in 25 years” if proper steps to protect physical and mental wellbeing aren’t adhered to. A lack of social interaction and proper exercise has resulted in higher stress levels, which physically manifest in higher blood pressure, obesity and wrinkly, pale dull skin.
Susan has poor posture from hunching over a laptop and blood-shot eyes from computer vision syndrome. It is clear this is a dramatic reflection of what working from home could do, but what’s the actual likelihood? Yahoo Finance spoke with a man who feels fitter mentally and physically since seeing how much “greener the grass is” with work from home balance.
Pat works in IT for Sydney Trains and had been full time in the office until the pandemic. IT is one of the top 10 jobs still offering work from home flexibility.
“If anything, I'm probably less healthy the days I go in with going and buying lunch out or getting coffees or breakfast in the morning,” he told Yahoo Finance.
As a gamer, he already had an ergonomic set up that he’s since upgraded (and claimed as a tax deduction) so no 'tech neck' or computer vision syndrome. He feels more productive at home and is happier to take breaks to move around with the level of trust afforded in a remote setting, where it can be harder to get away from his desk in the office.
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The Sydnesider does enjoy the social aspect of being among his team, but feels balance helps all of them work better overall.
“I actually do enjoy the days I go in, but I don't enjoy them because they're productive. I enjoy them because I'm seeing my team. We will have a couple more coffee runs and just talk about life and family, which is the kind of stuff you don’t want to fill every 30 minute Teams call with.”
Pat said working from home gives his day a bit more structure to plan exercise or catch ups with his friends and family - a big tick for his health. He would consider working more days in the office but would not want to go back full time. The IT worker said it’s now something he asks about in his interviews.
Working from home means I can plan things with my mates easier or at least have more consistent timing.
We've changed the balance of things… Coming from quite a flexible team, when you've got good managers who are looking at you based on your output and your productivity versus your time sat in a seat, they're two very different metrics.
How do I stay healthy while working from home?
Experts weighed in with some tips when trying to avoid ending up as unhealthy as Susan. Here’s what they shared:
Nurture social interactions:”Going without human contact for long periods of time can lead to higher levels of the stress hormone cortisol, which raises blood pressure and has harmful effects on physical health,” psychologist Kate Brierton said. To combat this, you should consciously build opportunities to connect with colleagues. Or like Pat, maintain healthy outside work relationships.
Exercise: Taking the incidental exercise that comes with a commute, whether that be walking to the train station or bus, or even your car, could have an impact on your physical and mental health. For some, the office gives you more reasons to get up, like going to meetings or getting a coffee. Others have been able to establish great exercise routines without the hassle of in-office work. Either way, keep in mind to get up for regular breaks to move around, or even try yoga to combat “tech neck”. Setting a reminder on your phone to take regular breaks can help chase those endorphins.
Maintain work-life balance: When your home becomes your office, it can be hard to switch off. Brierton has suggested having a separate work space you can walk away from to help yourself differentiate between time spent on you, and times you can get into work. If that’s not possible she said to try “delineate the space with the way you lay out the furniture, use some house plants or pictures to mark your working space, or divide the floor space with a rug”.
Take advantage of extra free time: Taking a commute out of your day can give you mor time to think about and enact positive change in your physical or mental health. “You could spend that time socialising with friends and family, taking a walk in nature, or doing a fitness activity you enjoy. All of these activities are good for us and will improve your overall performance at work more than simply having a longer working day,” Brierton said.
You can find some other expert tips here.
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