Stress, anxiety, depression and poor social support may be hampering employees’ efforts to achieve wellness goals, according to a new wellness report by ComPsych Corporation.

“There is strong correlation between high stress/emotional issues and poor lifestyle choices,” said Dr. Richard A. Chaifetz, Chairman and CEO of ComPsych. “For example, smoking and overeating may be a means to self-medicate undiagnosed depression.

“To be effective, corporate wellness programs must focus on emotional as well as physical factors of the employee, and include a counseling component to address underlying issues,” he added.

Key Findings of the Report:

• 40 percent say an emotional or physical health problem has interfered with normal activities with family, friends, neighbors or groups.
•  36 percent say they are tense or anxious much of the time.
• 43 percent did not receive good support from friends and family in the past six months.
• 21 percent said they have felt down, depressed or hopeless in the past month.

In addition, employees’ current habits trend toward unhealthy:
• 15 percent of employees get zero exercise; another 31 percent only exercise one or two days per week.
• 34 percent of employees consume one or less fruits and vegetables each day.
• 23 percent admit to binge drinking within the past six months.
• Only 16 percent get enough sleep.

 For a copy of the complete report, visit www.compsych.com