For a sizeable number of office workers, the concept of eating a proper lunch has become non-existent. A quick bite in between calls. A salad speared between emails... Lunch has quietly become just another task to tick off. But eating at your desk won’t make you more productive – in fact, for the 28% of British workers who say they regularly eat lunch at their desks, it is probably doing you more harm than good.
When we spoke to Dr Zoe Billings, who teaches people how to cope with and reduce chronic stress, she said, ‘Eating at your desk to just squeeze in some extra emails while you chomp is not just false economy, it’s bad for your digestive system.
‘Our guts have to work really hard when we eat to digest the food,’ says Dr Billings, ‘and they need a good blood supply to do that. As soon as you’re thinking about stressful things – a nagging email that lands while you’re mid-chew, for example – the blood is diverted to the musculoskeletal system and away from the guts. You are asking them to do a hard job, with no energy or resources.’ When you’re stressed, your body prioritises muscles over digestion. You get less out of your food and more of the uncomfortable stuff: bloating, indigestion, sluggishness.
And eating at your desk appears to be a particularly British problem. A study from the British Psychological Society suggested that as many as 82% of Brits don't take a full lunch break - whilst over in France, working during your lunch break is known colloquially as a ‘British lunch’ and is heavily frowned upon. In fact, the French have a strict no-eating at your desk rule and a proper lunch break has been considered a necessity since legislation was passed in 1894 requiring workers to leave the workplace for a lunch break.
Why do we feel compelling to rush through our midday meal? Well, many people surveyed cited their relationship with their managers as a reason for feeling the pressure to skip lunch, as well as feelings of guilt or anxiety around ‘taking too much time’ away from their desks.
But it’s taking time away from your desk that Dr Billings says is most important, ‘to eat and really focus on the food. Look at it, taste it, chew it, savour it, swallow it, next bite. It isn’t a race, and inhaling your food at warp factor three isn’t good.’
Eating slowly and attentively helps your brain register fullness, prevents overeating and gives your gut time to do its job properly and – most importantly – effectively. It sounds simple, but in an always-on culture, choosing to step away is a luxury that all of us can afford.
