A comprehensive review of academic studies on post-pandemic workplaces has revealed that working from home offers several health benefits, including healthier eating habits, reduced stress, and lower blood pressure.
However, remote workers are also more likely to snack, drink alcohol, smoke, and gain weight.
Despite some concerns from employers about productivity, the study found that home workers tend to work longer hours, take fewer sick days, and often work evenings and weekends.
Funded by the National Institute for Health and Care Research, the review analysed nearly 2,000 studies on remote and hybrid working.
Professor Neil Greenberg, a psychiatrist at King’s College London, highlighted that employers should treat home working with the same level of importance as office work, stressing the need to create effective home environments.
The review identified that home working impacts health, careers, and the working environment. Wealthier employees tend to benefit more from remote work, while those with childcare or household responsibilities, often women, face more stress.
Health outcomes were mixed, with increased vegetable and fruit consumption but also higher rates of weight gain and sedentary behaviour.
Greenberg urged managers to support remote workers, adding that companies resistant to work-from-home options risk losing talent and falling behind in future crises.
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