Nearly four out of every 10 office workers are overweight, with men twice as likely than women to have the problem, a survey released yesterday by the Health Promotion Administration (HPA) showed.
The telephone-based survey, conducted from Aug. 15 and Sept. 30 last year, found that 38 percent of the 6,026 respondents aged 15 or older who work full-time were overweight.
“It is worth noting that the percentage of male workers who were overweight was as high as 52.2 percent, compared with just 22.2 percent for their female counterparts,” HPA Community Health Division interim director Chen Miao-hsin (陳妙心) told a press conference in Taipei yesterday morning. “The reason behind this large gap is still to be determined.”
Chen said that frequently dining out rather than eating home-prepared meals might be a factor behind the prevalence of weight problems at the workplace.
According to the survey, 57.3 percent of respondents ate breakfast purchased outside, while 63.8 percent and 26.9 percent opted for store-bought meals for lunch and dinner respectively, Chen said.
“In addition, 61.8 percent of those polled failed to consume three servings of vegetables, while 66.5 percent did not eat two servings of fruits, as recommended by the Ministry of Health and Welfare,” she said.
Chen said that while store-bought meals are a convenient choice, they often have a higher calorie count, are saturated with salt, oil and sugar, and are low in fiber.
The health agency urged people to cut back on sugary drinks, processed foods and late-night snacks, while increasing physical activities, such as by getting off the bus or MRT train one stop early and walking the rest of the way to work.
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