London - Having responsibility at work could have an unwelcome effect according to a study which found that staff who make lots of decisions have bigger waistlines.
One reason is that the stress of having to make choice after choice fuels comfort eating, said researcher Christopher Bean. He added that knowing why people overeat is vital to cut obesity levels.
For his PhD study at Adelaide University in Australia, he weighed and measured 450 men and women who worked in occupations ranging from manual to management. The volunteers were also quizzed about the demands of their jobs. The results showed those who make lots of decisions each day had the biggest waistlines.
The study printed in the journal Social Science & Medicine found that being in a demanding, highly time-pressured job was not a factor. However, variety and the chance to learn new skills were linked with a lower weight.
Bean said: “It is important to find innovative ways of extending our understanding of how work may be implicated in the development of obesity.”
Daily Mail