Asia, we are often told, is ageing so rapidly that it may not have much time to enjoy its economic miracle before it is saddled with the costs of caring for its elderly. However, emerging data suggest the region also risks being derailed by another looming problem — the ill health of its workforce.
“Poor dietary choices and sedentary lifestyles are leading the countries of Asia and the Pacific into a future of lower productivity and ballooning public healthcare costs,” the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization warned in October.
Now in its third year, the AIA Vitality Healthiest Workplace survey has expanded to cover the health and wellbeing of more than 26,000 employees in the Asia-Pacific region. It reveals alarmingly high levels of mental and physical ill health.