With the prevalence of white-collar jobs these days, especially in the financial sector, many of us are glued to our seats in a small cubicle called an office with the bright lights of our computers in front of us urging us on and our comfortable office chair. We are stuck in our seats most often for a minimum of 9 hours every day. Although, with little or no physical movement, sitting in uncomfortable chairs take an excruciating toll on our backs not ruling out other health disadvantages.
In a study conducted by Staples Inc., the American multinational office supply retailing corporation, 86 percent of office workers admit to experiencing discomfort with the furniture they use at their workplace, with more than half of these workers wishing to change their chairs.
The office chair is one of, if not the most important of office furniture. With many workers spending more time on it even more than their bed at home, it is essential to have a comfortable office chair. Based on a research by Humantec, an ergonomics consulting firm, a comfortable chair should have your back supported and your feet planted on the floor with your thighs parallel to the floor and knees at a 90-degree angle. The height of the chair should be adjusted in such a way that the computer monitor is below eye level and wrists are straight when extended to the mouse and keyboard.
For the benefits of all persons stuck in a 9 am to 5 pm job out there, we will be elucidating the benefits of having a perfectly fitted chair in the office.
Remember sitting in a bad chair all day puts pressure on your spine so here are some reasons why you should get yourself a comfortable office chair.
It Improves Efficiency and Productivity
Having a comfortable office chair helps to improve the efficiency and productivity of the worker. When you eliminate back pains and in general body pains, you can put in more hours to works, and achieve better results. With less worry about the better way to sit in the chair to be comfortable, more concentration is given to the office tasks at hand. Research published in 2008 in the Journal of Safety Research supports this by finding that an office equipped with comfortable office chairs experience a 17 percent increase in productivity averagely.
For Your Health's Sake
Continuously sitting in a lousy position has been found to cause a lot of health risks. Its adverse health effects can be likened to that of alcoholism or smoking. For instance, sitting in an uncomfortable chair can obstruct the smooth flow of blood around the body and also allows clots to form. Research has found that prolonged sitting in an awkward position improves the risks of cardiovascular diseases. In contrast, a comfortable office chair allows for smooth circulation of blood thus, reducing the risks of cardiovascular disease to the barest minimum.
Prevents another case of the Hunch-Back of Notre Dame
The benefits of a comfortable office chair to one's posture and physique cannot be understated. Bad chairs adversely affect your stance as prolonged sitting in a wrong position can lead to massive pressure on the muscles at the back, eventually making them overstretched and leading to bad postures. A comfortable office chair supports your posture while sitting. It provides for headrest and backrest which help to improve posture.
It Prevents Back Pain
Comfortable office chairs ensure that all forms of back pain derived from prolonged sitting is gone. With its backrest, the natural curve of your spine is supported. It's important to get a comfortable chair that is also supportive.
Pressure on the Hips is Reduced
Usually, when we sit, the seat applies more weight than necessary on the region around the hips. However, the soft nature of comfortable office chairs has proper depths usually between 5 – 10 centimeters from the back of your knee that support the hips and the buttocks, therefore, reducing the pressure on the hips or buttocks when we sit. This especially great for ladies combating cellulite.
Your Neck Pains are Gone
The headrests in comfortable office chairs provide support to the neck when sitting for a prolonged time. It helps to prevent stiffness and pains in the neck and shoulders. These headrests avert dangerous health risks like cervical spondylosis (something you don't want to experience).
Is Relaxing
Sitting in a comfortable office chair relaxes you and allows for better concentration. Your muscles, ligaments, and body, in general, will be incredibly grateful to you when you sit in a comfortable chair. The relaxing nature of an office chair helps to relieve you of the stress that comes with your work.
Reduces Worker's Compensation and Health Care Costs
Not only is having comfortable chairs in the workplace of significant benefits to the health of the workers, but it also aids the employer a great deal. By getting comfortable chairs for your employees, you reduce the amount of money your company spends on compensation and health care for your employees.
Having seen the benefits of a comfortable office chair in the workplace, now purchase some for yourself.