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. 2024 Jun 13;16(6):e62294.
doi: 10.7759/cureus.62294. eCollection 2024 Jun.

Health and Wellness Characteristics of Employees Enrolled in a Workplace Wellness Study in the United Arab Emirates: A Descriptive Analysis of a Pilot Study

Alshafi Mohammad  1   2 , Marília Silva Paulo  3   4 , Salama Al Hosani  5 , Omar Al Jabri  5 , Zain Al Yafei  6 , Sonali Datta  6 , Erik Koornneef  7   3
Affiliations

Health and Wellness Characteristics of Employees Enrolled in a Workplace Wellness Study in the United Arab Emirates: A Descriptive Analysis of a Pilot Study

Alshafi Mohammad et al. Cureus. .

Abstract

Introduction: Modifiable health behaviors have the power to increase (or decrease) the risk of chronic diseases, impacting a population's health. Health and wellness programs can potentially play a major role in initiating and supporting positive changes in health behaviors, which may lead to reducing the risk of premature mortality. A better understanding of the health and well-being status of the population is crucial to the design of proper and effective interventions. This pilot study aimed to describe the health and well-being status of a cohort of employees in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

Methods: This pilot study reports the demographic characteristics, body composition, cardiovascular fitness, functional fitness, biological age, and well-being of employees from a large health sector company enrolled in a workplace wellness study in the UAE. Employees were invited to participate in an intervention that was designed to validate the efficacy of weekly health and wellness challenges. Descriptive statistics were used to describe the employees' distribution.

Results: Of the 123 selected, 116 employees participated in the study. The mean age of participants was 39.2 years old, 80% of them were non-Emirati, and the majority were from Middle-Eastern and South Asian ethnicities. The prevalence of overweight, obesity, hypercholesterolemia, hyperlipidemia, prediabetes, and diabetes was 35%, 29%, 34%, 79%, 30%, and 7%, respectively. Almost half of the participants (47%) were prehypertensive for systolic blood pressure (BP), 80% had the fitness category of poor-very poor, and the majority (60%) reported exercising <150 minutes/week. The mean functional fitness score was 12.2 points, which indicated an increased risk of injury with physical activity.

Conclusion: The findings of this pilot study suggest that despite the advancements in healthcare in the UAE, several key preventable risk factors are still prevalent in its population. The introduction of comprehensive health and wellness programs at a broader scale holds the potential to facilitate the adoption of healthier lifestyle behaviors, thereby contributing to improvements in the overall quality of life across the population.

Keywords: employees; health; united arab emirates; well-being; workplace wellness.

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Conflict of interest statement

Human subjects: Consent was obtained or waived by all participants in this study. Abu Dhabi Health Services Co. (SEHA) issued approval SEHA-IRB-45. This study was in accordance with relevant guidelines and regulations including the Declaration of Helsinki. Animal subjects: All authors have confirmed that this study did not involve animal subjects or tissue. Conflicts of interest: In compliance with the ICMJE uniform disclosure form, all authors declare the following: Payment/services info: All authors have declared that no financial support was received from any organization for the submitted work. Financial relationships: All authors have declared that they have no financial relationships at present or within the previous three years with any organizations that might have an interest in the submitted work. Other relationships: All authors have declared that there are no other relationships or activities that could appear to have influenced the submitted work.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1. BMI distribution of participants
BMI, body mass index
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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