Health problems haunt IT employees: Survey

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Health problems haunt IT employees: Survey

Night owls doing those graveyard shifts are being haunted by health problems. IT and IT-enabled services are the worst affected, reports CNBC-TV18.

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Night owls doing those graveyard shifts are being haunted by health problems. IT and IT-enabled services are the worst affected, reports CNBC-TV18.

About 40% cannot sleep and an equal number are obese, 50% suffer from gastritis and 12% are infertile. That is the statistics emerging out of an independent survey conducted on IT and IT-enabled services sector employees in Chennai, by a private firm- the Anti-Ageing Clinic.

Employees like AV Kabilan of HCL couldn't have agreed more with the findings. He is 51 years old and works the overnight shift. He cannot sleep during the day and the ill-effects are already showing.

"It affects not just me but a whole lot of youngsters in the age range of 21-30. They are looking older, are in poor health and are not able to sleep. At some point of time, it starts to affect your decisions as well," said AV Kabilan , VP-Operations , HCL ,

People who work overnight tend to take in a diet rich in carbohydrates to keep the energy levels up. In turn, they compromise on essential nutrients in their food.

According to Dr Kousalya V Nathan, Dietician, "They sit in front of computers for most of the day and then overeat, mainly carbs. So, they do not get a balanced diet. They burn the midnight fuel and get irritated in the daytime. So, they have cravings for food with high-carb content, like chocolates and pasta and pizza, and high calories is a dangerous factor."

However, corporates are waking up to this problem. Companies like HCL are making provisions to provide quality health food in their canteens and also provide full-time facilities like an in-house gym. But firstly, the companies need to spread awareness among its employees about the far-reaching effects of this problem.

With India being globally recognized for its back-office support in software, it makes sense to take care of the people who are doing the work. Even the Central Government is taking note. The Health and Infotech Ministry plans to put together a dedicated IT policy in place by 2008, with stress on preventive health.