Why skipping lunch at work can hurt your health and productivity
Skipping lunch might seem like a small compromise, but experts warn it comes at a cost: stable energy, clear thinking and team cohesion all take a hit when employees don’t pause.
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Tang Jia Wen
29 Nov 2025 09:30PM(Updated: 01 Dec 2025 04:23PM)
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Skipping lunch on a workday is a no-brainer for finance executive Priscilla Lee, 32.
The nature of her high-pressure, fast-paced and deadline-driven sales job means there’s always something pressing at hand, so to avoid working overtime, she starts her day with a filling breakfast at around 9am and rides it straight through to late afternoon.
“I can’t enjoy a meal when I know there’s something more important to finish,” she said.
On its face, her logic may sound melodramatic – surely few things can take priority over a basic necessity like food. However, Ms Lee’s outlook is one that many office workers have been quietly adopting.
A 2025 survey, done by Censuswide for Deliveroo for Work, polled 500 white-collar workers in Singapore and found that only 32 per cent take their full lunch breaks on working days. Workload pressures were cited as the biggest barrier, although ironically, 82 per cent of respondents acknowledged that eating properly boosts productivity.
Some of these pressures stem from leaner teams due to restructuring or hiring slowdowns in recent years which have left employees stretched, as observed by Mr Raymond Low, senior engagement manager at DecodeHR.
For others, family responsibilities play a role – saving just 20 minutes can help them squeeze in school or daycare pick-ups, check on kids’ homework assignments, or be present for their evening routine.
However, this growing trend raises a bigger question: Are we sliding into a lunch-break crisis without noticing?
THE REAL PRICE OF DESK DINING
Skipping or rushing through our midday meal to get a little more work done sounds like a worthy compromise.
But lunch is more than just a few bites of food. Experts said it affects our health, stress levels and even the way we connect with colleagues.
Eating at the desk might feel like you’re multitasking like a pro, but your body begs to differ. In “work mode”, stomach acid and digestive enzyme production lag behind, impairing nutrient absorption – so much for efficiency.
When your attention is split between a bite and an email, the act of eating becomes more mindless. We stop paying attention to whether our portions are too big or too small. Prioritising convenience to keep our hands (and brain capacity) free for our mouse or keyboard also makes us more inclined towards foods that are fried or dry, filling our stomachs without providing lasting energy or proper nutrition.
Over time, these by-products of sidelining lunch can have real health consequences, warned Ms Soh Wan Keem, principal dietitian and founder of Nutrimaxx Consultancy. We may find ourselves struggling with digestive problems, fluctuating energy, impaired focus, weight changes and even disrupted sleep.
Used to doubling up at dinner to compensate for a missed lunch? Turns out subbing your lunchtime nutrition for a heavy night-time meal only adds new problems.
It can strain digestion, unsettle our blood sugar and throw our body’s hunger cues off balance, making us more likely to repeat the cycle of skipping meals.
Beyond the physical toll, skipping or rushing lunch can have a detrimental effect on our work.
The act of pausing to socialise over a meal during a busy workday may seem frivolous, but these small moments matter more than they appear.
Mr Kelvin Kao, founder of creative agency Protocol, said lunch breaks provide “organic touchpoints” that help colleagues build empathy.
“A lot of things can be ironed out in informal conversations (over a meal), be it perspectives on work or challenges with clients,” he said.
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Too much on our plates: More Singapore workers opt for snacks over meals due to high-stress work environments
Mr Low from DecodeHR said that employees may choose to forgo their break to appear dedicated in offices where being visibly busy still carries weight, or because leaders work through lunch themselves.
“These subtle signals shape behaviour more than we realise,” he said. “Over time, it creates a culture where taking a proper break can feel like an indulgence.”
When the natural interactions that occur over shared lunches are sidelined, teams lose more than respite. Trust, collaboration and the social connections that keep workplaces resilient are quietly eroded, added Mr Low.
THE CASE FOR RECLAIMING LUNCH BREAKS
Experts said lunch breaks don’t just quell the growling of our stomachs; they’re investments in clearer thinking, steadier energy and better performance.
Taking a proper lunch break activates the parasympathetic “rest and digest” mode, ultimately optimising nutrient absorption, said Ms Soh from Nutrimaxx Consultancy.
“Regulated eating also promotes perceived self-efficacy,” the accredited dietitian added. This correlates with better mood, while a measured pace helps stabilise glucose levels for steadier focus and productivity.
For marketing executive Keiilynn Rainn Dean, 22, stepping away from her desk for lunch is a necessary refresh for her brain.
“I don’t function well when I’m mentally drained. These (lunchtime) resets often give me better ideas when I return to my desk,” said Ms Dean.
Her midday reset isn’t just a trick of the mind.
As DecodeHR’s Mr Low pointed out, meaningful pauses like these improve focus, reduce stress and enhance creativity and decision-making. A quick walk after lunch, he added, is especially effective for clearing the mind and renewing focus.
Carving out space for these breaks can make employees more engaged, less prone to burnout and enable them to perform at a higher level, making it a win-win for everyone in the office.
Lunch breaks also do something email threads and desk dining can’t: they make colleagues feel human.
“At lunch, we have the space to joke, laugh and bond regardless of hierarchy,” said Ms Dean.
Over time, said Mr Low, these shared moments build stronger team cohesion and morale than organised activities such as team-building workshops, making them an essential investment in workplace culture.
MAKING LUNCH BREAKS WORK
The good news? Bringing proper lunch breaks back could be easier than we think.
In Mr Kao’s office, employees are used to seeing him step away from his desk to tidy the pantry or messy corners of the office – not as a chore, but as a moment to recharge.
“It’s less about rules and more about creating trust and leading by example,” he said.
Managers can make breaks feel natural by casually inviting teams out for lunch or encouraging smaller group catch-ups.
Mr Low from DecodeHR suggested human resource leaders reinforce this with clear “break-friendly” norms, such as no emails or calls during lunch, which works for hybrid setups too.
For remote staff, optional virtual lunch catch-ups or simple tips like turning off notifications during one’s lunch hour and setting a timer can help ensure uninterrupted breaks.
Simply including a comfy chair or two, a snack nook or a little coffee station onsite makes it less daunting for workers to step away from their desks for a short while.
Office spaces, too, make a difference. Simply including a comfy chair or two, a snack nook or a little coffee station onsite makes it less daunting for workers to step away from their desks for a short while.
But in the meantime, employees don’t have to wait for office policies to reclaim lunch – they can take simple steps themselves.
Ms Soh of Nutrimaxx recommended prepping simple, balanced meals before work: wraps with colourful veggies and protein, salad boxes with nuts and quinoa, or gentle options such as tofu, spinach and fish.
Mindful eating also doesn’t have to be a complicated process. Ms Soh suggested a quick one-minute check-in before digging into your food: Take three slow breaths, notice your food’s aroma and temperature, and savour the first few bites.
After eating, stepping away from your desk, even for just 90 seconds, will help with digestion.
For those hectic afternoons where everything seems to be on fire, Ms Soh suggested keeping handy a mini “rescue pack” of nutritious snacks such as rolled oats, peanut butter and blueberries, to stay powered without resorting to junk foods with unhealthy amounts of sodium or sugar.
But when more nutritious snacks are out of the question, grabbing something quick and easy may not be entirely healthy – but it’s still better than powering through on an empty stomach, said Ms Soh. Long gaps between any food at all can cause fatigue, irritability and poor focus, and is also more likely to make you overeat later.
Most importantly, taking a proper lunch break isn’t about being perfect, whether it’s in terms of nutrition or productive efficiency. Rather, it’s about building habits that will enable us to take care of ourselves in the long-term.
Mr Low from DecodeHR said even “micro-breaks” of just a few minutes away from the desk can ease us into the habit of stepping away.
The challenge is not so much convincing people of the benefits of lunch breaks, but overcoming stubborn mindsets, he added.
“(We need to) see lunch as a boost, not lost time.”
3 Reasons Your Stomach May Hurt After Eating Chicken and What to Do About It
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Updated on August 6, 2025Medically Reviewed
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Across the United States, chicken is very often what’s for dinner. But if that everyday protein greets you with an upset stomach, vomiting, or abdominal cramps, you could be dealing with food poisoning or, very rarely, an intolerance to chicken or an outright allergy.
Here’s more about why you might have stomach pain and other symptoms after eating chicken and how to treat the discomfort.
1. You May Have Food Poisoning
If you have stomach cramps after eating chicken, consider foodborne illness first. Along with nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, and a fever, abdominal pain is a typical symptom of food poisoning.
[1]
“The most common cause of stomach pain or gastrointestinal distress after consuming chicken is food poisoning,” says Beth Oller, MD, a family physician at Rooks County Health Center in Plainville, Kansas. There are a few ways that chicken can lead to foodborne illness:
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- Contamination Poultry and other foods can be contaminated by bacteria or parasites, which lead to feeling sick after eating chicken.
- Problems During Processing The chicken could have been mishandled during processing or shipping to the store.
- Not Following Food Safety Guidelines The meat on your plate may not have been cooked correctly. Chicken can never be served raw or rare — it needs to be cooked to an internal temperature of 165 degrees F.[3] “You can also get sick if the juice from raw meat has gotten onto surfaces or other foods,” Dr. Oller says. (That’s why you shouldn’t use the same knife or cutting board to chop up veggies and raw chicken.)
The bacteria generally associated with food poisoning from chicken are campylobacter, salmonella, and Clostridium perfringens, Oller says.
You may have symptoms like nausea, vomiting, stomach pain, and fever as fast as a few hours after eating chicken, and they can last for several days.
[4] Older adults, people who are pregnant, young kids, and people with a compromised immune system are more susceptible to food poisoning.
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To avoid foodborne illness, follow these guidelines:
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- Refrigerate chicken at 40 degrees F or below, and eat it within two days. If you freeze chicken, it’ll keep there indefinitely as long as it’s continuously frozen. That said, as time goes on, the quality of the chicken may be lower.
- Thaw chicken safely (that means never leaving it on the kitchen counter). The easiest way to defrost frozen chicken is to leave it in the refrigerator the night before. If you need to defrost chicken quickly, place it in a leak-proof bag, submerge the bag in a container of cold tap water, and replace the water every 30 minutes. This method will thaw a pound of chicken in around an hour; for a larger amount of chicken, up to around 4 pounds, it’ll take about three hours.
- Prepared chicken (like rotisserie chicken) should be eaten within four days if refrigerated or four months if frozen.
When in doubt, don’t eat it: If it’s pink inside and undercooked, or if cooked chicken shows signs of being bad, such as a slimy texture or foul smell, don’t eat it.
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Many cases of food poisoning ease up after a couple of days and can be treated at home with rest, tiny sips of water, and small portions of bland food like toast, bananas, and rice for a while after that. Avoid dairy, alcohol, and fatty meals so your stomach has a chance to settle and get back to normal.
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2. You Could Have a Food Allergy
It’s not common for people to be allergic to chicken — in fact, a poultry allergy is considered very rare.
[9] But a poultry meat allergy could also be a secondary allergy, most likely due to an egg allergy (a far more common allergen). For instance, 5 percent of children who are allergic to eggs will have a reaction to chicken.
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Food allergies cause your immune system to misfire, reacting to something in food as if it’s dangerous to you. The result is an array of potential symptoms, including hives or a rash, a runny nose, wheezing, and gastrointestinal distress like stomach cramps, nausea, and vomiting. In severe cases, a food allergy can lead to a potentially fatal reaction called anaphylaxis, which can entail trouble breathing and a loss of consciousness.
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If you have a food allergy, the most effective treatment is to avoid the food that triggers your symptoms entirely. That said, gastrointestinal problems will often clear up on their own or with over-the-counter remedies.
“And if anyone has symptoms of anaphylaxis, such as trouble breathing, swelling of the mouth or throat, or a fast heartbeat, they need to be seen in the ER immediately,” Oller says.
3. You May Have a Food Intolerance
The difference between a chicken intolerance and a chicken allergy is that with an intolerance, the digestive tract struggles to work well, rather than the immune system. That can lead to gastrointestinal symptoms like stomach pain, gas, bloating, diarrhea, nausea, and heartburn.
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But unlike an allergy, there’s no risk of anaphylaxis with a food intolerance, so it isn’t life threatening.
For gastrointestinal symptoms that can accompany a chicken intolerance, your best bet is to try over-the-counter treatments for diarrhea and gas, such as bismuth subsalicylate (Pepto-Bismol) and loperamide (Imodium). And while it’s possible to still enjoy chicken when you have an intolerance, some people may need to stop eating this meat altogether to fix these digestive problems.
When to See a Doctor
If you’re feeling sick after eating chicken, the most likely explanation is food poisoning. While many cases of food poisoning can be treated at home, reach out to your doctor if you experience the following symptoms:
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- Frequent vomiting and an inability to keep down even water
- Diarrhea that lasts more than three days or bloody diarrhea
- Fever higher than 102 degrees F
- Dehydration warning sighs like extreme thirst, little or no urination, or dizziness
For symptoms that are potentially due to an allergy, make an appointment to see an allergist.
Signs of anaphylaxis, such as breathing difficulty, throat swelling, and severe wheezing, mean an immediate trip to the ER.
[13]
The Takeaway
- The most likely cause of diarrhea after eating chicken is food poisoning, which can be caused by contamination, problems during processing, and not following safety guidelines while defrosting, prepping, cooking, or storing the meat.
- A chicken allergy or intolerance, although not that common, can also cause gastrointestinal distress.
- If you experience frequent or severe diarrhea after eating chicken, talk to your doctor, who can help determine the cause and get you the appropriate treatment.