Abstract
Occupational health deals with diseases or injuries caused due to work. Different types of work cause different types of ill-effect on health and may cause changes in health traits; empirical studies on the issues are scanty. The present study aims to investigate the differences in selected health traits between two occupational groups of the same ethnic origin. Cross-sectional data collected on 357 adult Oraon labourers engaged in two different occupations, namely, agriculture and brickfield in Jalpaiguri district, West Bengal, of which are 62 male and 43 female agricultural labourers and 136 male and 116 female brickfield labourers. Data consists of anthropometric measurements, blood pressure, and haemoglobin traits. Health status assessed in terms of BMI, systolic and diastolic blood pressure, and haemoglobin level following standard cut-off values. Mean values of both the occupational groups show similar trends in case of selected anthropometric and health traits. Individuals are ecto-mesomorphic irrespective of sex and occupation. Majority of individuals of either sex of both the occupational groups are underweight but hypertensive. In anthropological data, the trend of mean values is important than mere statistical significance. Data indicates that both the occupational groups have similar health condition, maybe due to their heavy manual activity.
Highlights
Occupation that generates income [1] plays a vital role in the well-being of individuals [2] engaged in jobs
Emphasis is given primarily on sedentary occupations which may enhance the chances of cardiovascular diseases [9], diabetes [10], and cancer [11]
The people who work at agricultural field and plantation area may suffer from worm infestation [22] and snake bite [23] as they have to work in bare foot. Pesticide poisoning is another risk for agricultural worker [24]
Summary
Occupation that generates income [1] plays a vital role in the well-being of individuals [2] engaged in jobs. Many working conditions create physical and mental stress that causes ill effects on health and enhance the chances of several infectious [3], communicable [4], and noncommunicable diseases [5, 6]. The people who work at agricultural field and plantation area may suffer from worm infestation [22] and snake bite [23] as they have to work in bare foot. Pesticide poisoning is another risk for agricultural worker [24]. Fear of losing job and unemployment may prevent one from taking health care timely [26]
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