Effects of a Worksite Health Programme on the Improvement of Physical Health among Overweight and Obese Civil Servants: A Pilot Study.

BACKGROUND

Physical inactivity and reduced energy expenditure has led to increased obesity among office workers. This study was conducted to investigate the effectiveness of a worksite health programme aimed at improving physical health among obese civil servants.

METHODS

A total of 28 employees participated in a six-month-long obesity health programme, which consisted of two weekly unsupervised exercise sessions and monthly dietary/health education sessions. The physical fitness and body fat percentages of participants were assessed at the baseline and after six months, using SPSS version 20.0.

RESULTS

The participants were 31.6 years (SD 8.2) of age, and had a BMI of 27.6 kg/m(2) (SD 3.2). The Wilcoxon test showed significant differences in body fat percentage (P = 0.010), gross maximum oxygen uptake (VO2max, P = 0.014), partial curl up repetition (P = 0.001) and sit and reach distance (P = 0.005). However, no significant effects were observed on body mass (P = 0.193), self-perceived level of physical activity (P = 0.145) or behaviour toward exercise (P = 0.393).

CONCLUSION

The worksite health programme successfully improved the physical fitness and body fat percentages of subjects, despite not improving the subjects' self-perceptions with regard to physical activity.