By Kellie Walters, Ease@Work Wellness Intern

The Problem…

 How is wellness affecting your employees?

 Think about it.

 Do you see people slouching over their desks, only to be out sick for back pain later?

• Is one of your employees eating junk food every day and ends up having to leave early because of stomach pains?
• Do employees sit at their desk all day and steadily increase in weight?
• Does an employee end up on disability because of a work related injury that may have been prevented if they were in better shape?
• Has an employee missed work because of a heart attack or other serious condition?

Now think about how that affects your profits.

For many employers, 20% of the workforce accounts for 80% of the health care claims. Heart disease, asthma, mental health disorders, cancer, and hypertension are the major drivers of health care costs. Besides requiring doctor visits, these conditions often require a great deal of daily medication. Karin Palmer, R.D., and co-creator of the EASEy Weigh program explains, “Some of the highest costs in healthcare claims come from prescription medications – your blood-pressure meds and cholesterol reducing meds like Lipitor and other designer medications.  What makes this even more expensive is that you are often refilling them on a monthly basis, unlike periodic visits to the doctor.” 

The Solution…

Many of the above conditions (and their costs) could be prevented with behavioral and environmental changes. By eating better, exercising, quitting smoking, reducing stress, and stopping substance abuse you can help reduce the incidence of these conditions and, in turn, help reduce health care claims. As an employer, you can help your employees turn things around and get back into health.

Employers can make a few workplace changes to create a healthy workplace culture. The process of eliminating unhealthy triggers and surrounding employees with healthy choices will help facilitate change. A wellness program should be centered on prevention, have a definite focus, and involve some sort of system to measure success. The following are some components to consider including:

Make healthy the only option…or at the very least, an option.

            Too often, employers promote “workplace wellness sabotage” where donuts are strategically placed in the most visible office areas and where staff meeting refreshments consist of sodas and chips. Vending machines are stocked with sugary and fatty snacks. Instead, start serving fruit and stocking up on healthy snacks. If better food is accessible, people are more likely to eat it.    

Make the office a place for fitness.

            How convenient would it be to get in a workout on your lunch break or right before you leave for the day? Giving employees a place to work out will help them do it more. 

Get up and go!

            Get your employees up and moving. Encourage employees to take those few steps over to another office to ask a question instead of sending someone an email. Create a lunchtime walking group. To really get employees up and moving, hand out pedometers and offer a prize to the biggest stepper.

Promote a smoke-free environment.

            Policies on tobacco in and around the workplace vary, but one thing about tobacco use is universal – it does affect health and health care costs. If you are looking to do something in this area, consider offering tobacco cessation coaching to your employees. Create policies that prohibit smoking on the property or taking smoke breaks.  A health insurance premium discount on non-tobacco using employees is very effective, but sometimes controversial.  Be careful not to call it a penalty for smokers, which is a violation of ERISA.

Counseling Services

            Stress, poor mental health, and substance abuse can have a negative impact on employee health. Not only is mental health crucial to well being, it is also important for good physical health.

 Wellness Committee

           When instituting a wellness program, you should create a wellness committee to champion these changes. Ideally, this committee will have 3-5 people who represent the goals of the program and drive it forward.  Try to get representation from as many departments as possible, so that they can have a positive effect on participation and input can be obtained from throughout the company.

 On site weight management programs

            Consider bringing in an on site weight management program. Chances are many of your employees already want to do something like this but don’t think they have the time. By bringing it into the workplace, employees are more likely to stick with it.

Some final tips…

• Don’t expect to see changes overnight. Studies have shown that it takes three- to five-years for wellness programs to take effect.
• Recognize that there are resources out there for you. Consider community resources that can help you implement some of these programs.

Sources:

Wellness Council of America. “Creating a Culture of Wellness: A WELCOA Quick Inventory.” 2009.

Sibson Consulting. “Results from Sibson’s Heath Enterprise Study.” 2011.

By Stephanie Patek

For most of us, the holiday season is filled with family…and food. Unfortunately, the edibles aren’t always the healthiest, as we munch on cookies and pies, and we sip eggnog, cocktails and other high calorie and high fat options. The key word is options – and you do have them. You can choose to make, purchase and eat healthier treats.

Here are a few suggestions:

When mixing your favorite beverage, use low-calorie mixers, seltzer, and low-fat milk or evaporated milk versus cream or half-and-half.

When baking cookies or other desserts, use lower-calorie, more natural substitutes such as low-fat plain yogurt in place of oil, and brown rice syrup instead of sugar. Use neufchatel cheese (light cream cheese) versus the full fat type. Cinnamon also gives a sweeter taste, so you can reduce sugar and use this for added flavor in many dishes.

Swap out higher-calorie choices for similar goodies. For example, instead of a slice of pumpkin pie, try this extremely quick and easy pudding:

Pumpkin Pudding

Combine 1 cup canned pumpkin with 1 sugar free or fat free vanilla pudding pack. Add pumpkin pie spice (or sprinkle on cinnamon and clove) to taste. This recipe is so easy, you can make as little or as much as you need, without difficult calculations.

Visit www.cookinglight.com or www.epicurious.com for other healthy holiday recipes and tips.

You are capable of getting through the season without guilt! Be sure to compare labels and look for the lower sugar and lower fat choices.

To view the “naughty list” of holiday foods, visit www.webmd.com/food-recipes/slideshow-naughty-list-of-holiday-foods.  If you do choose to splurge, find out how many calories you are actually consuming (and how long you’d have to walk to work them off). Visit http://walking.about.com/library/cal/blholidaycalories.htm.

Ease@Work offers nutritional coaching for employees with access to our EAP or wellness services as a benefit through their employer.  For more information, go to www.easeatwork.com.

By Valerie Nosek

Several weeks ago, Ease@Work was asked to participate in a diabetes education program at one of our client organizations. At first, we thought it was because Ease could offer consultation with a certified diabetes educator through the nutritional coaching feature of our services. However, we were surprised to learn that we were being requested to focus on depression as associated with diabetes.

The group conducting this program had taken a survey of employees attending the sessions, asking pertinent questions about their actual diabetes care program, but also included in the survey were questions about depression, such as:

• How often do you feel blue or depressed?

• How long do these episodes of feeling down last?

• Does feeling down make you feel isolated or unable to enjoy things you used to enjoy? Etc.

Almost 50 percent of those who took the survey gave responses that indicated some level of depression.

Those in diabetes education are very familiar with the link between depression and diabetes. However, we found that link between mental health and diabetes is not as well-known in the general medical community or even by those who have lived with diabetes for years.

According to the American Diabetes Association (ADA):

• People with diabetes are at greater risk for depression

• Poor diabetes control can cause symptoms that look like depression

(high or low blood sugar during the day may make you feel tired or anxious; low blood sugar levels can lead to hunger and eating too much; low blood sugar at night can disturb your sleep; high blood sugar at night may make you get up often to urinate and in turn leave you feeling tired during the day)

The ADA goes on to say that there are no easy answers about why those with diabetes have a greater risk for depression, but they suspect a variety of reasons contribute to the likelihood, including:

• The stress of daily diabetes management

• The feeling of being set apart from family or friends due to the extra work of managing diet

• Other health complications from diabetes

• Feeling of losing control due to trouble or inability to keep blood sugar levels where you want them

• Tensions between family members, friends, doctors and other medical providers involved in diabetes care

• A vicious cycle of depression and low energy can lead to poor blood sugar testing/monitoring, which in turn exacerbates the situation; or anxiety may make it hard to maintain a good diet, or lead to skipping meals, which again, will cause blood sugar levels to get out of control.

As a comprehensive employee assistance program (EAP), we could offer assistance to a diabetic employee/or a family member in a collaborative manner on a number of levels:

• Consultation with a registered dietitian certified in diabetes education (CDE). A CDE could help the individual with menu planning, provide information on healthy food choices, discussion of any particular blood sugar control questions and more.

• Consultation with a counselorexperienced with depression as associated with medical conditions, such as diabetes. A clinician could help the individual/or family member address stressors, anxiety, feelings about not being in control, how to recognize/deal with depression, etc…

• Consultation with a fitness coach. Getting proper exercise is also a factor in managing diabetes effectively. Physical activity is also known to boost the “feel good” hormones produced by the body, which can alleviate some forms of depression.

On a personal note: A couple weeks after Ease’s participation in the diabetes education program, I happened to be talking with a longtime friend who is a diabetic. He was struggling emotionally and said he really didn’t feel like talking with me or anyone else…not to take it personally, but he just felt completely spent and down. I also knew he had been having trouble recently keeping his blood sugar levels in check.

When I asked him if he was aware of the connection between depression and diabetes, he was completely unaware…and this from a person who has been managing diabetes for over 25 years.

After talking with him a little longer, it was as if a light bulb went on for him – the connection between certain events and situations in his life seemed to make more sense when paired with the role depression may have played in them. I offered him some reading resources, and while I did not expect to remedy his situation, at least I know he has more awareness about the link between diabetes and depression, and that he is open to addressing the issue with a professional.

If you are diabetic, make an effort to monitor your mood as well as your blood sugar. If you find yourself struggling, call your EAP and speak to a counselor. If you know somebody who is diabetic, do not assume that they know of this connection. Chances are, they are not aware of it and they might be more likely to take action to get help if they understand the biological link to this common mental health issue.

Starting a fitness program doesn't have to be complicated...it can be a "walk in the park" with a little guidance from a good fitness coach.

The Best Time to Start a Fitness Program

By Valerie S. Nosek

When is the best time to start a fitness program? Whether you’re talking about diet or exercise, people often vow to start health and wellness activities at particular times…how often have you heard:

“I’m starting my diet on Monday.”

“After the holidays, I’m going to start eating better and exercising.”

“When I get back from vacation, I’ll work on getting in shape.”

But really, the best time to start a fitness program (if you don’t already have one in place) is right now. Unfortunately, procrastination is often used as an excuse for putting off the positive action that could be taken immediately.

One person who has been successful at lifestyle change put it this way:

“Your body does not know what day it is…Procrastination leads to a cycle of days, then months, then years. If you are thinking about starting a fitness program or a diet, put down your Twinkie and start now, not tomorrow!”

The article, “Procrastinating Health & Fitness,” went on to point out “not many people procrastinate brushing their teeth, using toilet paper, or combing their hair before going out. Most people consider this personal hygiene as a non-negotiable part of life.”

Shouldn’t diet and exercise be on this list as a non-negotiable? We think so.

An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.

When Benjamin Franklin made the remark above, he could have been talking about what we know about disease prevention and wellness today. Health care professionals agree that the majority of chronic diseases are preventable (or even reversible in some cases) when people make healthy lifestyle choices.

“Nutrition, smoking cessation, substance abuse prevention, stress reduction and exercise are all modifiable lifestyle risk factors,” said Stephanie Patek, an Ease @Work acccount representative and certified fitness coach.

Getting Started

Employees should always check with their doctor. It’s always important to start with the healthcare provider in order to find out if there are any current health risk factors that would impact an exercise plan. (However, even with certain health issues, a fitness plan is not out of the question. It just has to meet the criteria or limitations your employee’s doctor specifies.)

Encourage use of available resources. “Insurance usually doesn’t cover preventative wellness services, such as nutritional or fitness coaching, until problems surface or symptoms show,” Patek says. So “think outside the box” on how to access needed information and/or support.

Libraries offer a wealth of educational resources on health, wellness and fitness…at no out-of-pocket cost! Use library resources to develop a “get started” plan, or step-up a plan already in place.

Suggest employees find a mentor in a friend who is practicing a healthy lifestyle.

Explore programs at the local community center, church, YMCA/YWCA or other fitness center. Watch for free informational wellness-related seminars at hospitals or healthcare centers.

Wellness committees and human resource professionals. Many employers have already implemented wellness initiatives in the workplace; others, aware of the need for a healthier workforce, are in the process of developing programs. Find out if your employee assistance program (EAP) is a comprehensive provider. Does your EAP offer nutritional coaching, smoking cessation, fitness coaching along with stress management?

And don’t forget…awareness is key. Your EAP should be your partner in promoting awareness of available wellness programs by providing flyers, employee newsletters, on-site visibilities and seminars.

Call us, we can help…Ease@Work offers comprehensive and fully integrated EAP services. We also offer assistance with developing or expanding your organization’s wellness program.