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Drinking Water Improves Job Performance

Drinking Water Improves Job Performance

Post By: Celeste McLaughlin, Ergonomics Manager
Produced by: Solutions Northwest, Inc. (Ergonomics Experts serving Washington, Oregon, and California)
Ergonomics Tips: Drinking Water Improves Job Performance
Drinking Water Improves Job Performance

“If you’ve noticed more joint pain and stiffness as you’ve gotten older, you may be overlooking a critical cause that most people don’t realize can affect joint health: hydration (or lack thereof).”  Dr. Williams

The water cooler is your friend. Whether you’re sitting in an office or walking the floor of a warehouse, you should always stay hydrated at work. Water will not only keep you from being thirsty, it will also provide you with health benefits and help keep you and your workers productive at work.

Learn how drinking water helps you become a better worker and just how much water should you should drink.

The benefits of water

According to organicfacts.net, the health benefits of drinking water include “the maintenance of energy levels, body temperature, metabolism, and breathing. It helps in the prevention of constipation, heartburn, migraines, gastritis, ulcers, kidney stones, cardiovascular disorders, rheumatoid arthritis, backaches, and osteoporosis.” Water also plays important roles in kidney function and skin care.

The key takeaway is that water can help you boost your energy. It may be time to consider switching from the daily coffee or energy drink to focusing on staying hydrated for that extra energy boost at work.

How much water should you drink per day?

Consuming half your body weight in ounces of water every day is recommended. For example, if you weigh 150 pounds, you should drink 75 oz. (7 ½ cups) of water every day. If it’s hot, or you are exercising you should up your water intake. When drinking something dehydrating such as a caffeinated drink or a glass of alcohol, it is recommended to drink 1.5 oz. of water for every oz. of caffeinated drink or alcohol you’ve consumed.

Remember, you don’t have to pour a glass of water to consume water, as 20% of our water intake can be fulfilled by a proper diet rich in fruits and vegetables.

How do you know if you’re not getting enough water?

If you experience any of these symptoms, try drinking more water:

  • Fatigue
  • Headache
  • Lightheadedness
  • Dark under eye circles
  • Dry mouth
  • Dry skin
  • Constipation
  • Dizziness
  • Irritability and confusion
  • Dark colored urine
  • Heat exhaustion
  • Kidney stones
  • Rapid heart beat
  • Shriveled dry skin which lacks elasticity

In Conclusion

Drink plenty of water at work. Water is usually provided by most employers for free and is much cheaper than coffee (if you must buy it bottled). If there are no water coolers in your workplace, speak with an office administrator or supervisor to see if management will install one for you. Remember to always consult with your doctor to rule out a possible underlying cause of pain at work.

Hopefully these ergonomics tips can help keep your workplace a safe work place. For more guidance on all work related health and safety issues, visit SolutionsNW.com or Contact Us for more information.

Be sure to subscribe to our blog for more ergonomics tips from Solutions Northwest Inc., ergonomics consultants located in Washington State, Northern California, Oregon, Seattle, Olympia, Tacoma, and Portland.

 

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Ice versus Heat for Lower Back

Ice versus Heat for Lower Back

By Celeste McLaughlin, Ergonomics Manager
Solutions Northwest, Inc. – Arcata, California

Ice VS Heat for Lower Back Pain Relief

“More than half of Americans (54%) who experience low back pain spend the majority of their workday sitting.” TheGoodBody

Whether your workstation has been designed by an ergonomic specialist or not, constantly sitting at your work desk can lead to lower back pain. In fact, 54% of Americans with sedentary jobs experienced low back pain.

After a long day of sitting at work, you may want to treat your back pain, but should you grab the ice pack or the heating pad?

After Injury, Apply Cold Therapy First

If you injure your lower back, it is best to apply cold therapy during the first 24 to 72 hours. Cold therapy will help minimize inflammation and swelling, which reduces pain and can decrease tissue damage. While there are special ice packs designed for cold therapy, a frozen towel or even a bag of vegetables will do.

However, it is important to be careful when using ice packs as they can burn your skin. Try using a cloth between your skin and the cold source. Do not use cold therapy for more than 20 minutes at a time and do not use it more than 10 times during a 24 hour period.

Apply Heat After Initial Swelling and Inflammation has Subsided

After you use cold therapy to bring down swelling and inflammation, begin using heat therapy to encourage the healing process. Heat therapy increases the blood flow to your injury, bringing more nutrients to the injured area while flushing out the injured debris. Heat also increases tissue elasticity, which helps relieve tension and knots.

For minor back tension, 15-20 minutes of heat therapy may be enough. For more intense pain, 30 minutes to 2 hours of heat therapy may be needed.

Apply dry or moist heat (whichever you prefer) with over the counter heat pads, creams, saunas, or hot tub. An easy home remedy is to fill an old sock with rice or oatmeal, tie or sew it shut, and put it in the microwave for 1-3 minutes.

Use caution to avoid burns, as you should be experiencing warmth and not intense heat.

Ice vs Heat for Chronic Lower Back Pain

What if you don’t have a new injury, but just have chronic lower back pain from sitting all day at the office? In this case, there really is no right answer when it comes to hot versus cold. Everyone is different, so trial and error may be in order.

However, some experts suggest that you should use heat therapy to loosen up your muscles for the work day and use cold therapy afterward to help with any pain and inflammation.

In Conclusion

Remember, when it comes to any kind of pain or injury, always consult with your doctor first. Also, be sure to get up and walk around every 20 minutes while at work and live an active life to help avoid any workplace injuries. For more health tips, exercise ideas, and suggestions to keep your workplace a healthy environment, check out our blog featuring advice from our ergonomics experts.

For an ergonomics consultation to keep your workplace safe and healthy, visit SolutionsNW.com or Contact Us for more detailed information.

Don’t forget to subscribe to our blog for more ergonomics tips from Solutions Northwest Inc., ergonomics consultants located in Washington State, Northern California (Arcata), Oregon, Seattle, Olympia, Tacoma, and Portland.

 

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3 Ways Exercise Benefits your Work Life

3 Ways Exercise Benefits your Work Life

By Celeste McLaughlin, Ergonomics Manager
Solutions Northwest, Inc. – Arcata, California

3 Ways Exercise Benefits Your Work LIfe

Workers that reported healthy habits were also workers that had high productivity in the work place.” – Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine,

We all know that eating right and exercising often is good for you, but do you know just how good? Aside from health benefits, your everyday life can see improvement, which includes your work life and productivity on the job.

In fact, according to JOEM, employees that reported healthy habits were also workers that had higher productivity than average in the work place.

3 Ways Exercise Improves Your Work Life:

1. Improved Productivity at Work

Exercise boosts your energy, promotes a better night’s sleep, and improves your overall mood. Unlike artificial energy boosts, these boosts will last you throughout the day, from home to the work place. A JOEM study has shown that employees that exercise at least 30 minutes, 3 times a week, were 15% more likely to have higher job performance.

2. Less Sick Days

In a JOEM study, absenteeism was reportedly 27% lower for those workers who ate healthy and regularly exercised compared to the average worker. Being active boosts good cholesterol and decreases unhealthy triglycerides, which allows for smoother blood flow and decrease of cardiovascular diseases. Additionally, exercise helps combat stroke, type 2 diabetes, depression, several cancers, arthritis, and falls.

3. Happier Work Life

Work can be the cause of a lot of stress in life and exercise is a great way to combat that stress. Hitting the gym or going for a brisk, 30-minute walk can help stimulate various brain chemicals (endorphins, adrenaline, serotonin, and dopamine) that work together to leave you feeling happier and more relaxed throughout the day.

Many studies have shown that proper exercise can be as effective as medication for improving mood in mildly depressed individuals, though it is not a medical substitute, the results are very telling.

In Conclusion

Whether you’re looking to improve your home life or work life, exercise is a great way to achieve that goal. Try around 150 minutes per week of moderate exercise to feel the benefits exercise has in store for you. Keep it fun, set clear goals, and remember to check with your doctor before starting any new exercise program.

For more health tips, exercise ideas, and suggestions to keep your workplace a healthy environment, check out our blog featuring advice from our ergonomics experts.

For an ergonomics consultation to keep your workplace safe and healthy, visit SolutionsNW.com or Contact Us for more detailed information.

Don’t forget to subscribe to our blog for more ergonomics tips from Solutions Northwest Inc., ergonomics consultants located in Washington State, Northern California (Arcata), Oregon, Seattle, Olympia, Tacoma, and Portland.

Contact our Experts

Sitting vs Standing While Working

Sitting vs Standing While Working

Post By: Celeste McLaughlin, Ergonomics Manager
Produced by: Solutions Northwest, Inc. (Ergonomics Experts serving Washington, Oregon, and California)

Sitting vs Standing While Working
“Sedentary time — even among physically active people — may be associated with an increased risk of heart disease, diabetes and more.” American Heart Association

Too much sitting has been shown to increase the risk of heart disease, diabetes, and more. Occupations that require computer work, office work, telecommunication, driving, etc. will generally require employees to sit at a desk or in a vehicle, so what is one to do? Is the solution to purchase a standing desk?

Our ergonomics experts will examine this dilemma and provide some suggestions to avoid injury in the work place.

Sitting at Work vs Standing at Work

Sitting allows one to conserve energy and stabilize the body, therefore performing tasks like computer work, driving, or even micro-surgery generally involve sitting. However, sitting for over an hour at a time can release biochemical changes in the body that lead to heart disease.

Standing while working may seem like the logical solution to too much sitting. Standing can help burn more calories than sitting due to the energy required to stand, however prolonged standing has perils of its own. Standing for long periods of time may cause aching joints and sore feet in the short term and in the long term, too much standing could cause painful back problems or permanent muscle damage.

What about Sit-Stand Workstations?

Often both the employer and employee think that the ergonomic risks are abated once a sit-stand station is installed, when in fact, the sit-stand workstations may have introduced new ergonomic risk factors. A sit-stand workstation may lead to awkward postures of the spine and upper extremities with incorrect equipment heights in relation to the individual’s anthropometric needs, incorrect equipment positioning, and incorrect equipment. Additionally, sit-stand workstations do not resolve the issues of repetitive work with inadequate rest breaks. Studies show that the typical break schedule of 15/30/15 minutes is not sufficient to recover from repetitive office work.

The Solution is Movement

If both sitting too long and standing too long is bad for you, then what is the solution? The answer is movement. Moving frequently to avoid prolonged inactivity is key.

Don’t be afraid to sit while doing computer work, just be sure to incorporate movement in to your day beyond your 15/30/15 breaks. This means, every 20-30 minutes stand and take a posture break for a few minutes and move around for a couple of minutes more. When you walk around, your blood circulates through your muscles and benefits your body.

You don’t need to do exercises at your desk (though here is a list of some you can do if you wish), but get into the habit of walking to the printer, grabbing a beverage, standing during meetings, using the stairs, walking the floor, and even parking further than necessary in the parking lot.

In Conclusion

Just use common sense to break up prolonged inactivity in the workplace. Realize that simply standing in one spot for hours isn’t the solution to too much sitting, but that movement is key. And as always, remain proactive about your health in the work place.

For an ergonomics consultation, visit SolutionsNW.com or Contact Us for more detailed information.

Don’t forget to subscribe to our blog for more ergonomics tips from Solutions Northwest Inc., ergonomics consultants located in Washington State, Northern California, Oregon, Seattle, Olympia, Tacoma, and Portland.

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Exercise at your desk: Inner Thigh Exercises

Exercise at your desk: Inner Thigh Exercises

Post By: Celeste McLaughlin, Ergonomics Manager
Produced by: Solutions Northwest, Inc. (Ergonomics Experts serving Olympia, Seattle, Salem, Portland, Arcata, and more.)

Watch Solutions Northwest Inc.’s Ergonomics Exercises video series:
Exercise at your desk: Inner Thigh Exercises” by clicking on the image above or visiting our YouTube channel.

After watching the video, find more exercises you can do at your desk:

Working out can seem like quite the chore, but our Ergonomics Consultants at Solutions Northwest, have compiled a list of exercises that you’re able to do at work – and better yet, you can do most of these exercises while sitting down on your office chair.

Check out this playlist of exercises that strengthen your core, improve your posture while sitting, and provide enough strength to make it through a sedentary, office workday.

Ergonomics Exercises you can do at your desk Playlist:

Our ergonomics experts have assembled these workouts for you in order to help make your office an injury free work zone.

Be sure to share these tips with your employees, especially if you work in the Human Resources or Office Administration department. For more guidance on all work related health and safety issues, visit SolutionsNW.com or Contact Us for more detailed information.

Don’t forget to subscribe to our blog for more ergonomics tips from Solutions Northwest Inc., ergonomics consultants located in Washington State, Northern California, Oregon, Seattle, Olympia, Tacoma, and Portland.

Contact our Experts

Exercise at Your Desk: Stomach (abdominal) exercises you can do from your office chair.

Exercise at Your Desk: Stomach (abdominal) exercises you can do from your office chair.

Watch Solutions Northwest Inc.’s Ergonomics Exercises video series:
Exercise at Your Desk: Stomach (abdominal) exercises you can do from your office chair.” by clicking on the image above or visiting our YouTube channel.

After watching the video, try reading one of our Related Blog posts about ergonomics safety in the office or at the workplace:

After watching the video, find more exercises you can do at your desk:

Working out can seem like quite the chore, but our Ergonomics Consultants at Solutions Northwest, have compiled a list of exercises that you’re able to do at work – and better yet, you can do most of these exercises while sitting down on your office chair.

Check out this playlist of exercises that strengthen your core, improve your posture while sitting, and provide enough strength to make it through a sedentary, office workday.

Ergonomics Exercises you can do at your desk Playlist:

Our ergonomics experts have assembled these workouts for you in order to help make your office an injury free work zone. Be sure to share these tips with your employees, especially if you work in the Human Resources or Office Administration department. For more guidance on all work related health and safety issues, visit SolutionsNW.com or Contact Us for more detailed information.

Don’t forget to subscribe to our blog for more ergonomics tips from Solutions Northwest Inc., ergonomics consultants located in Washington State, Northern California, Oregon, Seattle, Olympia, Tacoma, and Portland.

Contact our Experts

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