Workplace physio service sounds alarm over bone health

Employers have been urged to promote activities to improve bone health, with a survey finding that one in eight workers who have had to take time off work because of a musculoskeletal (MSK) issue had a broken bone or fracture.

A survey of more than 1,600 employees by workplace physiotherapy service PAM Physio Solutions found that 13% who recorded an MSK absence had a break or a fracture.

Back pain (29%) was the most common reason for MSK absence, followed by lower body pain (22%) and upper body pain (17%).

Ten per cent reported an inflammatory condition, nervous system condition or an MSK issue resulting from menopause.

Sophie Ginn, clinical team leader for PAM Physio Solutions, said modern lifestyles could be contributing to worsening bone health in employees.

She said: “Issues ranging from worsening nutrition and poor posture to increasingly sedentary lifestyles are undermining the bone health of employees.

“Since starting to work from home, many people have cut out the ‘loading exercises’ that are important for strengthening bones – such as brisk walking and climbing stairs.

“Lots of people are also unaware that the sun isn’t strong enough in the UK to absorb vitamin D over the winter months, meaning as many as one in two employees will now be vitamin D-deficient, putting their bones at further risk.”

Employers can help by providing nutrition education and encouraging employees to stay active via walking meetings or by using the NHS Couch to 5K app, Ginn suggested.

“It’s also important to ensure employees are working safely in ergonomic ways. Most work tasks are repetitive, so the more people complete them using poor posture, the more likely they are to weaken their bones and muscles,” she advised.

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“Employees who have already broken a bone can also be helped to return to work sooner with reasonable adjustments, whether that’s providing them with dictation software for a broken wrist or moving them into a less manual role for a time.”