Insufficient Workplace Infection Control and Unhealthy Lifestyle Behaviors Are Related to Poor Self-Rated Health During the COVID-19 Pandemic

• Published in: Journal of occupational and environmental medicine Vol. 65; no. 10; p. e668
• Main Authors: Inoue, Yukiko, Nakata, Akinori, Tateishi, Seiichiro, Mafune, Kosuke, Tsuji, Mayumi, Ogami, Akira, Odagami, Kiminori, Matsugaki, Ryutaro, Fujino, Yoshihisa
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States 01.10.2023
• Subjects: COVID-19 - epidemiology; COVID-19 - prevention & control; Health Status; Humans; Infection Control; Life Style; Male; Pandemics; Surveys and Questionnaires; Workplace
• ISSN: 1536-5948
• DOI: 10.1097/JOM.0000000000002940

This study investigated whether workers who practiced unhealthy lifestyles but worked under organizations with insufficient control against coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) would pose a synergistic risk of poor self-rated health (SRH). A total of 22,637 workers (men, 48.5%) were extracted from an online survey during the COVID-19 pandemic in Japan (December 2020). Multiple logistic regression analyses were performed to estimate adjusted odds ratio (AOR) against poor (poor, fair) SRH. Accumulation of unhealthy lifestyle behaviors (AOR, 1.49 to 4.40; P < 0.05) and insufficient infection control (AOR, 1.80; P < 0.05) were independently related to poor SRH; however, when these factors were combined, SRH was additively worsened (AOR, 2.14 to 7.72; P < 0.05). This study highlights that not only unhealthy lifestyle practices but also poor organizational management against infection would worsen workers' SRH during the COVID-19 pandemic.