What are the Best and Worst Jobs for Our Health?

A new study by Lenstore reveals just how much of an impact our careers have on our physical and mental health. The results show how we think COVID will affect health and safety in the workplace as well as the jobs most damaging to our health.

Everyone’s working environment is different, whether you’re working behind a desk five days a week or on a building site, we all have the right to feel that our health and safety is taken seriously. 39% of Brits said they are concerned about their mental and physical health being put at risk at work, with respondents taking an average of 3.5 off each year due to an illness caused by their job.

1 in 10 people in the UK have actually taken time off work because of a career-related illness, with stress and anxiety ranking as the top two reasons why. 20% of employees from Belfast admitted to taking time off work in the past year due to physical and mental illnesses, followed by Newcastle (17%) and Birmingham (13%).

The Most Stressed-Out Cities in the UK

When exploring the impact our jobs have on our mental health, these are the top cities whose respondents said their careers cause them the most stress:

1. Liverpool (75% of respondents said their jobs caused them the most stress)
2. Brighton (50%)
3. Bristol (50%)
4. Manchester (50%)
5. Nottingham (50%)

The Impact of COVID-19

As a country, we are faced with unprecedented times, with normality still a long way off. The survey asked respondents how they felt the virus would have an impact on health and safety in the workplace, with 15% saying they think it will actually have a negative effect due to companies taking health and safety to the extreme.

However, 29% did think it may have a positive effect, believing that health and safety will be taken more seriously.

The Best Jobs For Your Health

Our health is a vital part of our lives, and many of us are prepared to swap up diets, lifestyles, and hobbies to protect it. But do we think about how our job has an effect? Every career comes with its own hazards that we need to keep in mind, from spending hours each day looking at a screen, to working in dangerous environments.

To find which careers are the best for protecting our health, Lenstore has analysed 48 popular jobs to reveal which encounter the most health threats, including exposure to infection, risk of injury, and joint problems, as well as five others.

These are the 5 jobs with the best chances of staying healthy for longer, with lower figures representing lower exposure to health threats:

Which Job Roles Present the Greatest Health Hazards?

Not all roles are going to keep you healthy, however. Some come with considerations for not just your posture, but also your risk of injury and infection, particularly among emergency services. The five worst jobs for your health include:

Roshni Patel, BSc (Hons) MCOptom, Professional Services Manager at Lenstore said: “While jobs should be about pursuing our passions, it’s important to watch for what risks we might face in our roles. Some jobs are inherently at higher risk than others and it’s important to address the risks that we can reduce or resolve entirely. “

“We all have the right to feel that our mental and physical health is well looked after in our place of work, and whilst not every workplace is perfect, we want to shine a light on how employees across the country feel. Simple fixes that companies can implement to make their employees feel more supported, from the correct equipment to alleviate any back issues or eye strain, to simply communicating policies more frequently. There is no doubt that COVID-19 will change health and safety in the workplace and it’s vital that employers take this seriously to make everyone feel safe today and in the future”.