A healthy workforce is a productive workforce. Promoting a balanced and diverse diet in the workplace is a brilliant way to improve efficiency and happiness among your staff. Here are some great ways to encourage a healthy diet in the workplace.
Bring Healthy Options to the Cafeteria
Small changes can have a significant effect on the diets of your employees. If your company has an in-house cafeteria, changing the menu to include nutritious options can be a great way to build a healthy eating culture.
If your workplace doesn’t have a café, then there are other options. Offering healthy snacks in vending machines is an easy way to promote a better diet, or subsidising a communal fruit bowl in the office can help remove the temptation to eat crisps or chocolate. Your staff will undoubtedly get peckish during the working hours, so supplying nutritious snacks like nuts and fruit is a brilliant way to improve their health without compromising their work ethic.
Offer Alternatives to Takeaway Coffee
Yes, the coffee itself that you can buy from high street chains doesn’t differ significantly from that you can make in the office. However, what is different is the amount of sugar and additives present in the coffee you buy. Therefore, it could be beneficial to invest in a coffee machine for your workplace. This will allow your employees to make their drinks, making them far less likely to indulge in a sugar-filled frappucino.
This coffee machine buying guide from PureGusto offers some useful information to help you decide on your best option. Bringing in a coffee machine will also save your employees money and time, so it will undoubtedly be a hit.
Education is Crucial
Offering some form of education on healthy eating in the workplace is essential. It can be as simple as including a nutritious recipe in the weekly newsletter. You could also hire an expert to conduct a seminar on how to eat healthily. This can empower your staff to take their health into their own hands and lead a more balanced life. Promoting discourse about a healthy diet is an excellent way of making food a part of your company’s culture, which can help transform your employee’s habits.
Encourage Your Staff to Stay Hydrated
Everyone knows how important it is to stay hydrated, but you would be surprised how easy it is to go through a day without drinking enough water. Placing water jugs throughout the office is an option, but you could also invest in a water cooler or two in the workplace to encourage people to drink more.
Another option is to provide your employees with reusable company water bottles. These are relatively inexpensive and allow people to easily track their water intake throughout the day, helping them stay healthy.
The Takeaway
All in all, promoting a healthy and balanced diet within your workforce doesn’t have to be boring. You should avoid having a tyrannical approach to the issue, as this is more likely to make employees unhappy instead of changing their habits. By offering viable alternatives to unhealthy snacks and drinks and promoting a fun and open conversation about diet, you can maintain a culture of wellness in your business.
Photo credits: eOffice