British workers are in poor health, with more than 10 million UK male employees found to be overweight or obese.

British workers are in poor health, with more than 10 million UK male employees overweight or obese.

According to a survey of 8,778 workers by water cooler company Water Wellpoint, two thirds have an unhealthy body mass index (BMI).

Nearly a third of respondents have high blood pressure and 59 per cent have a lower fluid intake than is recommended.

Female workers don’t fare much better, with 44 per cent of women tested having a higher BMI than recommended, reinforcing data showing that more than half (56 per cent) are overweight or obese.

Rory Murphy, spokesman at Water Wellpoint, says: ‘We believe [poor health] is a real issue, both for employers who are trying to tackle sickness absence levels and maintain productivity, and for the coalition government which has made it clear it will cut costs across the welfare system and the NHS.’

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Related topics: Obse, Overweight, UK workers