-By Jaya Pathak
Over the decades, the Indian business story has centred on the Indian demographic dividend, or the economic potential of such a large number of young workers. However, what is weakening this asset is a silent structural failure but it is not in the balance sheets, but is the skeletal fit of the employees themselves. In Bengaluru, Gurgaon, and Mumbai, orthopaedic surgeons are registering an alarming change: the sounding knee, which was the main symptom of retirement, is becoming an irritant among younger professionals of early 30s age.
This is no longer anecdotal. According to the recent statistics, almost 68 percent of IT professionals in India complain of musculoskeletal problems that are associated with screen time and sedentary lifestyle. Worse still, research has indicated that more than half of people as young as 33 years already show early signs of cartilage destruction or bone spurs, even before chronic pain even begins. To the Indian businesses, this is one of the human capital risks which are critical in that it is a premature loss of the physical lifespan of the workforce.
The Corporate Athlete Epidemic of Silence
The contemporary Indian executive is more likely to lead a biomechanical extreme life. The most common violator is so-called weekend warrior. Tens of thousands of experts passively spend 50 to 60 hours per week sitting in ergonomic chairs, and thus effectively desensitize their glutes and hamstrings. Afterwards, when they are on a health-craze, they will do high intensity exercises, such as marathons, badminton, or CrossFit, during weekends.
This back and forth inactivity and hyperactivity bring about a load imbalance. The cartilage which is dependent upon regular, moderate motion to diffuse the nutrients is starved during the week and drums on Sunday. Dr. Ran Schwarzkopf, a professor of orthopaedic surgery, reports that this type of high intensity bursting together with the weak stabilizing muscles increases meniscal tear and micro-trauma that hastens osteoarthritis.
The Physiological paradox of India
Although sedentary lifestyles are a global challenge, the Indian workforce is exposed to a special situation of genetics and environment combination which has been stipulated as a double whammy. HR leaders and business leaders should comprehend that the Indian knee is morphologically different.
Studies have shown that Indians are more prone to constitutional varus (natural bow-legged position) than the Western folk. This position of the knee subjectively exerting greater mechanical loads on the inner (medial) compartment of the knee. This genetic tendency coupled with obesity, which is increasingly becoming a menace in urban India, collapses the joint much faster than in other population groups.
Moreover, even though the country is a tropical country, Vitamin D deficiency is rampant which undermines the subchondral bone which supports cartilage. The corporate world subjugates the employees into air-conditioned and UV-screened glass towers between 9 AM and 7 PM, actively adding to this shortcoming.
The Economic Cost of Presenteeism
This epidemic is not merely costly in terms of surgery but it is operational. Musculoskeletal disorders in rural settings have been reported to cost the country close to 5 percent of the per capita income yet within the high-value corporate setting the loss is seen as presenteeism. The employees report to work but they work at an under optimal level because they have chronic pain that is distracting.
A 32-year-old software architect should be kept apart by a physiotherapy two times a week or finds it difficult to sit during long coding sessions, and his productivity indicator reduces. This is reflective of the loss of the P&L of a company compared to the disaggregate data of public health in the form of the DALY (Disability-Adjusted Life Years).
Strategic Wellness: Not Behind the Standing Desk
Indian corporate reaction has been mostly cosmetic (giving standing desks or gym subsidies). The data however indicates that structural intervention is required.
- Compulsory Mobility: sitting is the new smoking is a hackneyed phrase, however standing is not the answer, it is moving. Brands should not take walking meetings and micro-breaks as a bonus but as a standard.
- Education in Ergonomics: The employees should learn that knee pains usually begin in the hips. Sitting can cause the using of weak glutes that require the knees to bear loads that they were not intended to support.
- Nutritional Audits: Cafeterias need to be audited on inflammatory foods and Vitamin D must be included in the annual corporate health check-up.
Conclusion
The issue of the early retirement of the knees of the Indian working age generation is a red flag at the dashboard of the Indian economic powerhouse. We are also running the risk of having a situation where our demographic dividend reaches retirement age of 50s on disability pension. To the Indian, his message is quite simple your career is a long run and you must train every day, not every weekend, to run it.
FAQs
1) Is your knee pain symptoms arthritis?
It may be a precursor not always, but it may be a precursor. Although osteoarthritis (wear and tear) becomes increasingly prevalent in this age group, the causes of the pain may be Runner Knee (patellofemoral pain syndrome), meniscal tears or tendinitis. Nonetheless, research indicates that more than half of the individuals at their early 30s have the potential of having defective cartilages in their bodies without any symptoms, which can contribute to arthritis when they are overlooked.
2) Why then such a tendency of Indians to knee problems?
The Indian knee structure tends to be constitutively varus (little bow legging) and has smaller knee dimensions than that of the west and creates pressure on the inner knee compartment. Also, culturally practiced activities such as squatting and cross-legged sitting (high flexion activities) demand a good health of the joint which is conflicting with the contemporary sedentary lifestyles and the poor muscles.
3) I have early pain in my knee that makes me wonder whether I am able to run or play sports?
Yes, but with modifications. The idea of the weekend warrior which is high intensity and zero conditioning is risky. Before increasing load, you need to tighten the muscles (quadriceps, hamstrings, and glutes) that support you. Blow out the knees by doing low impact cardio such as swimming or riding a bike until your muscles get used to it and you have more strength.
4) Is weight loss useful in the treatment of knee pain?
Absolutely. Approximately, the knee is in 4 pounds pressure to every pound of the body weight when walking.
5) How important is Vitamin D to the knee wellbeing?
Vitamin D plays a vital role in supporting the bones and cartilages. Though there is plenty of sunlight, the deficiency of many Indians is caused by indoor life and colour pigment of their skin. Low Vitamin D concentration reduces the strength of the bone below the cartilage and exposes it to micro-fractures and degeneration. Testing and supplementation are frequently required on a regular basis.
