It’s 10.30am on a Monday and already the smell of cakes is wafting towards your desk. The colleague, who usually does a spot of baking over the weekend, has been up all night making cupcakes and an email has just flown around about their latest goodies.
Later in the day another email pings into your inbox, this time it’s an update – there’s still some cakes left and also sweets have been purchased. The treat table, where confectionary congregates, is now overflowing. Someone has even been to M&S and bought a Colin the Caterpillar cake.
If this sounds all too familiar then you might be interested to hear that last month professor Nigel Hunt, from the Royal College of Surgeons, argued that cake culture is fuelling obesity and dental problems. Speaking to dentists at the faculty of dental surgery’s annual dinner, he said workplace temptations stop people losing weight.
Warnings like this may seem alarmist or even exaggerated, but cake culture at work has certainly grown in recent years. Gone are the days of the occasional birthday sponges, and our offices are starting to look more like patisseries. This comes at a time when we are facing a national obesity crisis: the UK is on track to have the highest obesity levels in Europe.
And it’s always the same people who bring in the treats (you know the ones I mean). These people are not bad people, they are kind, considerate people. They are not trying to make you overeat, but they are making it much harder to stay healthy.
Arguably you don’t have to take the snacks, and, as an adult, you should be able to say no. However, there is almost a reverse guilt around not accepting the baking of your colleagues. You feel bad for turning down a cake they’ve made to share together. The whole office frowns on you as if you’re some sort of killjoy when you decline to even taste Michael’s prize gateau.
What’s more, some people (myself included) simply do not have the willpower. For those who are genuinely struggling with their weight and trying to diet, the office baker wafting croissants around is their worst nightmare. Added to that the fact you’ve had a hard day, burdened with loads of extra work, and it’s even more difficult to resist.
Science also tells us that it’s harder to say no to food if it’s closer at hand. In a 2014 study, 40 secretaries were offered chocolate in various degrees of proximity. They ate more when they were nearer to it. And once you start snacking in work, it’s a vicious circle. Other studies show that patterns of snacking lead us to think that we need more food throughout the day. It’s a catch-22: the more you snack then the more you want to snack.
We are teaching ourselves bad habits at work, and it’s time to break them. We’ve rallied against turkey Twizzlers in school, the fast food industry and ready meals – so why do we ignore the rising amount of cake and sweets that are filling our workplaces? We know we are eating too much of the sweet stuff: the National Diet and Nutrition survey found all age groups were eating too much added sugar (11% of a person’s daily food calories should come from added sugars).
I understand why people bring in cake. I do it myself for the same reasons. It’s because work is hard, and sometimes the only moments of joy come from the Victoria sponge lying to the left of you. We now spend most of our days staring at a computer screen rather than interacting. We work much longer hours and don’t have the time to go for drinks after work or to lunch together. Maybe the advent of cake is all part of how our offices are changing. It is almost a way of creating a moment of togetherness where real communication is increasingly absent. But like sugar itself, it’s a quick (and empty) fix.
Instead of bringing your colleagues cakes, urge them to get up from their desk and go for a break. If your energy levels are crashing you probably need a screen-break rather than a snack. What we need is less work on our plates, not more cake.
Looking for a job? Browse Guardian Jobs or sign up to Guardian Careers for the latest job vacancies and career advice
