Jag ska nog bara äta en halv semla - Kvinnors upplevelse av hälsorelaterad kommunikation på arbetsplatsen

Abstract

Health and wellness have become central topics in today's working life, with many employers encouraging healthy lifestyles through activities such as health promotion, dietary advice and workplace exercise opportunities. However, these efforts may not be neutral, they intersect with societal norms regarding body ideals, health and morality. In this context, the workplace can become a site where health norms are communicated not only through formal communication, but foremost through informal, everyday interactions. This study explores women’s experience of evaluative and comparative health-related communication. This includes implicit and explicit norms and comments about food, exercise and health within public sector workplaces in Sweden. While health communication is often intended to promote well-being, it may also reinforce weight stigma, shame and social exclusion, particularly among women. To investigate this phenomenon, we conducted a qualitative, exploratory study based on ten semi-structured interviews with women aged 23-59, all employed in the public sector. Participants were recruited through convenience sampling, including outreach via personal networks and social media. The interviews were conducted via Zoom and analyzed using thematic analysis. Six main themes were identified in the interview material: emotional impact, values related to health, body and food, comparisons with others, comments from the surrounding environment, the influence of communication on the group and the individual and the categorization of individuals. The main result of the study is that evaluative and comparative health-related communication seems to be widespread in the workplace and is often experienced as emotionally taxing. Participants described how such communication triggered feelings of shame, inadequacy and frustration, and in some cases led to changes in behaviour, such as avoiding food in social settings or justifying their eating habits. Although some interactions were perceived as positive or motivational, participants felt that subtle comments, jokes or social comparisons contributed to an internalized pressure to conform to health ideals. Furthermore, the findings may suggest that these norms are reproduced mainly through implicit communication and that women play a central role in sustaining them. Younger participants frequently pointed to older female colleagues as primary actors in reproducing diet culture and health norms. In a broader perspective, the study contributes to theoretical discussions on social norms and weight stigma in organizational contexts. It highlights the need for increased awareness of how health-related conversations may affect workplace inclusion and individual well-being. Organizations should foster reflective communication where health promotion does not become a source of pressure or exclusion. Rather than prohibiting such conversations, the aim should be to create spaces where diverse bodies, behaviours and choices are respected.