Courtesy of CBS News via “The Rundown”
One in two American workers skips their lunch break at work, according to a new study, but experts say that’s not necessarily a bad thing.
Liz Angel, a digital media director, said she is just too busy to stop for 30 minutes to eat lunch.
“There is too much to do, and I find that if I leave, my routine it is hard to get back into,” Angel said.
She is not alone.
A new study finds 50 percent of U.S. workers don’t take a full lunch break.
“I like breakfast. I skip over lunch and then dinner,” writer Yon Ellis James said.
The majority of people surveyed say leaving work behind to eat is unrealistic because of intense workloads and pressure to perform.
Ravi Kudesia, a professor of human resources management at Temple University, said Americans “wear our busyness as a badge of honor, and we kind of also like to be seen as the person working right by their computer.”
Experts say not stopping to eat is actually good for some people, driving energy into their work and helping them stay focused. But it’s not that way for everyone.
“On the negative side, it leads to burnout, so there’s this double-edge sword,” Kudesia said. “I’m going to perform better, but I might be coming home at the end of the day depleted.”
If a 30-minute lunch break isn’t an option, try to take several smaller breaks during the day to clear your mind and fuel up — even if you have a lot on your plate, Kudesia said.
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