Restorative effects of forest therapy on mental health of fatigued female office workers / 环境与职业医学

Background Female office workers are prone to fatigue due to work and life stress. The natural environment has a positive effect on health, but little research has focused on the effects of forest therapy on physical and mental health of female office workers. Objective To explore the effect of forest therapy on the mental health of fatigued female office workers. Methods In this study, two environments, urban and forest, were selected. A total of 12 subjects with fatigue were recruited and randomly divided into two groups, urban and forest, six subjects in each group, with mean ages of 24.7 and 28.4 years, respectively, all of whom were company employees. The Brief Mood Scale, the Chinese version of Stress Self-Rating Scale, and the Fatigue Self-Rating Scale were distributed to assess baseline psychological indexes of mood, fatigue, and stress status. Higher scores indicate higher levels of negative mood, fatigue, and stress, respectively. The forest group participated in an on-site experiment using forest therapy (forest walks and sits in a forest environment), and the urban group followed the same schedule as the forest group conducting walks and sits in an urban environment. Salivary cortisol was used as the physiological index. Baseline physiological indices were collected on the first day of the experiment, and the on-site forest therapy experiment and collecting physiological and psychological indices were conducted on the second day; physiological indices were collected in the morning before the walk and physiological and psychological indices were collected after the walk, physiological indices were collected in the afternoon before and during the sitting, and psychological indices were collected after the sitting. Subjects' mood and fatigue status were followed up one week after the activity. Mann-Whitney U test and Wilcoxon signed rank test were used to assess the changes of the indicators. Results As to the physiological indicator, the salivary cortisol concentrations before and after the morning walk in the forest group were lower than the corresponding baseline values (both P=0.043); and the decreases were 2.21 and 1.86 nmol·L−1 respectively. Differences between groups showed a trend towards a greater decrease in salivary cortisol concentrations in the forest group than in the urban group after walking and at the 15 th min of sitting (both P=0.068). Among the mood indicators, the forest group showed a greater decrease than the urban group in fatigue dimension after walking (P=0.065) and after sitting (P=0.024); the forest group showed a greater decrease than the urban group in vitality dimension after walking (P=0.054) and after sitting (P=0.045); and the forest group showed a greater decrease than the urban group in "total mood disorder" after sitting (P=0.054). Among the fatigue indicators, the forest group showed a greater decrease in "physical fatigue", "mental fatigue", "consequences of fatigue", and "general fatigue" after walking and sitting than the urban group (all P<0.05). Among the stress indicators, there were not statistically significance of "tension", "loss of control", and "total stress score" between the two groups after sitting (both P>0.05). After one week after the activity, there were not statistically significant differences of mood and fatigue between the two groups (both P>0.05). Conclusion Forest therapy has a regulating effect on symptoms of negative mood, and fatigue in fatigued female office workers, but the effects of a short-term forest therapy last for a limited duration.

Isotemporal substitution of sedentary time with physical activity and its associations with mental health of Japanese office workers / 体力科学

In this study, we performed isotemporal substitution analysis to examine potential associations of sedentary time and physical activity with mental health of Japanese office workers. This study employed a cross-sectional study design. We analyzed data on 108 Japanese office workers (mean age 46.4 ± 9.8 years; 64.8% women) in the study. Sedentary behavior (SB; ≤ 1.5 metabolic equivalents [METs]), light-intensity physical activity (LPA; 1.6–2.9 METs), and moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA; ≥ 3 METs) were measured with a triaxial accelerometer. Two kinds of self-administered questionnaires, the mental stress (K6) and work engagement (Utrecht Work Engagement Scale), were used to assess negative/positive mental health. A cut-off score of 5 or higher on the K6 was used to define persons with mental stress. Logistic and multiple regression analyses using an isotemporal substitution model was applied to demonstrate the association between replacing 30 min/d of SB with an equal amount of time spent on LPA or MVPA and mental stress and work engagement; the studied covariates were age, sex, body mass index, economic status, education, and overtime hours. The results showed that replacing SB with MVPA for 30 min/d was significantly decreased odds ratio (OR) of mental stress (OR = 0.38, 95% confidence interval 0.15–0.92), whereas the replacement was not associated with work engagement (B = 0.16, P = 0.38). In contrast, substitution of SB with LPA was not associated with mental stress and work engagement. These results indicate that substituting sedentary time with MVPA could be associated with mental stress of Japanese office workers.

Comparison of work-related musculoskeletal symptoms between male cameramen and male office workers

BACKGROUND: Previous studies have classified cameramen’s job as physiologically heavy work and identified the risk factors of work-related musculoskeletal disorders (WRMDs) in cameramen. However, those studies limited their research subjects to cameramen. In this study, we compared the frequency and severity of WRMDs between cameramen and office workers. METHODS: A total of 293 subjects working in four broadcasting companies in Korea were recruited. A questionnaire survey was conducted for a month, starting in October 2016. The subjects were divided into cameramen and office workers according to their occupation. We compared the frequency and severity of WRMDs and ergonomic risk assessment results between the two groups. RESULTS: The high-risk WRMD group had a higher proportion of cameramen than office workers. Moreover, the high ergonomic risk group also had a higher proportion of cameramen than office workers for WRMDs in the upper extremities and waist+lower extremities. In the multivariable-adjusted model comparing cameramen and office workers, the odds ratio (OR) with 95% confidence interval (95% CI) for high-risk WRMDs was 3.50 (95% CI: 1.92–7.72) for the upper extremities and 3.18 (95% CI: 1.62–6.21) for the waist and the lower extremities. The ORs by body parts were 3.11 (95% CI: 1.28–7.57) for the neck, 3.90 (95% CI: 1.79–8.47) for the shoulders, and 4.23 (95% CI: 1.04–17.18) for the legs and feet. CONCLUSIONS: Our study suggests that cameramen are at high risk of WRMDs. Workplace improvements and management of the neck, shoulders, and lower extremities, which are susceptible to WRMDs, are necessary to prevent musculoskeletal disorders among cameramen.

Seat Pressure Distribution Characteristics During 1 Hour Sitting in Office Workers With and Without Chronic Low Back Pain

BACKGROUND: Low back pain (LBP) is a major problem for office workers. Individuals adopting poor postures during prolonged sitting have a considerably increased risk of experiencing LBP. This study aimed to investigate seat pressure distribution characteristics, i.e., average pressure, peak pressure ratio, frequency of postural shift, and body perceived discomfort (BPD), during 1 hour of sitting among office workers with and without chronic LBP. METHODS: Forty-six participants (chronic LBP = 23, control = 23) typed a standardized text passage at a computer work station for an hour. A seat pressure mat device was used to collect the seat pressure distribution data. Body discomfort was assessed using the Body Perceived Discomfort scale. RESULTS: Office workers with chronic LBP sat significantly more asymmetrically than their healthy counterparts. During 1-hour sitting, all workers appeared to assume slumped sitting postures after 20 minutes of sitting. Healthy workers had significantly more frequent postural shifts than chronic LBP workers during prolonged sitting. CONCLUSION: Different sitting characteristics between healthy and chronic LBP participants during 1 hour of sitting were found, including symmetry of sitting posture and frequency of postural shift. Further research should examine the roles of these sitting characteristics on the development of LBP.

A Study Of Work Related Complaints Of Arm, Neck And Shoulder (Cans) Among Office Workers In Selangor And Kuala Lumpur

The computer is well known as one of the important tools in the office that gives a lot of benefits but silently leads to musculoskeletal pain. There are many different kinds of musculoskeletal complaints pain but the most common seen among computer users in developed countries is the complaint of arm, neck and shoulder (CANS). Despite this, definite factors that can be associated with the prevalence of CANS have not been established. This study was conducted to identify the prevalence and factors associated with work-related complaints of arm, neck and shoulder (CANS) among office workers in Selangor and Kuala Lumpur. A survey study design was conducted where 110 (n=110) office workers were recruited from around the Selangor and Kuala Lumpur area for 5 months periods. Participants were required to answer the Maastricht Upper Extremity Questionnaire (MUEQ) and the Level of Ergonomic Knowledge Questionnaire. The study showed the highest percentage of CANS reported was at neck region (53.6% of participants), followed by shoulders with 53.0%. The majority of participants have low level of computer ergonomic awareness where only 19.09% (n=21) from government sector and 10% (n=11) office workers from private sector reported knowledge of ergonomics. Majority of the participants did not have the know-how in implementing correct computer ergonomics. However there was a weak association (r=<0.5) between CANS with work-related risk factors (work station, body posture, break time and social support), duration of hours using a computer and levels of ergonomic knowledge.