Workplace wellness and health promotion

Research shows that only 20 per cent of full-time workers in Canada meet recommended physical activity levels—likely due to time constraints and inflexible work schedules. As many individuals incorporate walking and biking into their daily commutes, finding ways to support and enhance these practical forms of exercise may help increase overall physical activity among workers. In this presentation, Dr. Avi Biswas shares results from a recent study examining how Canadians' decisions to walk or bike to work may be shaped by both the physical environment (e.g., walkability, cycling infrastructure, air pollution) and social environment (e.g., degree of marginalization and deprivation).

Published: October 2024

Nova Scotia's Make Your Move at Work (MYMAW) program is designed to help employers support their employees in adding more movement to the workday. It was informed by IWH research on Canadian workers' movement patterns and health, and how employers can integrate health promotion activities into the workplace.

Published: September 2024

Published: Preventative Medicine, June 2024

This study sets out to understand how daily activity patterns–including time spent sleeping, being sedentary and doing physical activity of varying levels of intensity—are associated with risks of heart disease and early death. It will also identify the effects of changing the duration of sleep and activity on health outcomes of workers in physically and psychologically demanding jobs.

Status: Ongoing

Published: BMC Public Health, September 2023

According to an IWH study, Canadian workers typically fall into six patterns of daily movement. These six patterns are associated with varying levels of cardiometabolic disease risk. In general, workers with higher daily activity levels had lower levels of cardiometabolic disease risk factors, but those with moderate activity also showed lower risk factors.

Published: June 2023

Published: Health Reports, March 2023

What daily physical activity pattern is best for your heart health? To answer this question, researchers at the Institute for Work & Health analyzed activity tracker data in a nationally representative sample of 8,909 workers and their 10-year risk of heart disease. This infographic compares how Canadian workers get their exercise—and the implications for their cardiovascular health.

Published: October 2022

The quality of built environments and social environments can support active transportation. This study aims to help fill a knowledge gap on the role of the built environment around workplaces, as well as the interplay between work and home environments.

Status: Ongoing

What daily physical activity pattern is best for your heart health? An IWH research team analyzed activity tracker data in a nationally representative sample of nearly 8,100 workers and examined their 10-year risk of heart disease.

Published: June 2022