Corporate Fitness and Active Aging

This blog was written by Jenna Pearson. Meet our blogging fitness specialists at the NIFS website.

In 2007, 11.7 million Americans were reported to have some form of invasive cancer. Men have a greater than 44 percent chance of developing some sort of cancer during their lifetime—this means that almost one out of every two males will be plagued by cancer. Furthermore, statistics show that more than 23 percent of men will end up dying from cancer (that’s nearly one out of every four). Women fare slightly better with a 38 percent chance of developing cancer (one in three) and a 19.6 percent chance of dying from cancer (one in five).

October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Why dedicate a whole month to breast cancer awareness? Of the more than 11.7 million cases of invasive cancer, about 2.6 million were breast cancer. More than 12 percent of all American women have breast cancer right now (that’s one out of every eight). Of those women, almost 3 percent will die from breast cancer (1 in 36). Early detection and awareness provide great defense against breast cancer. Health professionals estimate thousands of lives are saved each year through regular screenings and self breast exams.

Who Is at Risk for Breast Cancer?

Essentially, anyone with a pulse can develop breast cancer. Following are specific risk factors:

• Although men can be affected, being a woman is the main risk factor for developing breast cancer, as women are about 100 times more likely to have breast cancer than men.
• Age also plays a role in breast cancer development, with increasing age heightening your risk. About one out of every eight invasive cases occurs in women under the age of 45, whereas two out of three cases are found in women over 55.
• Five to ten percent of all cases are thought to be hereditary, or genetic, resulting from gene defects.
• Those with a positive family history of breast cancer are also at a higher risk (approximately three times more likely) than those having no immediate relatives affected by the disease.

Visit www.cancer.org to find out more about the risks for developing breast cancer.

Making Strides Against Breast Cancer

Support breast cancer fighters and survivors by participating in a “Making Strides Against Breast Cancer” event. Visit the American Cancer Society online to find an event near you.

This blog was written by Jenna Pearson. Meet our blogging fitness specialists at the NIFS website.

Habits are hard to break. This is especially true when it comes to your health. It’s very easy to fall into routines of not exercising, late-night snacking, eating out, watching several hours of television, and so on. In addition to diet and exercise-related health rituals, other behaviors that can be detrimental to health and similarly very hard to break free of include smoking, excessive alcohol consumption, excessive caffeine consumption, and self-loathing (or having a negative self-image)…and we all know how hard those can be to overcome!

Steps to Behavior Modification

In order to achieve permanent success in behavior modification, one must realize that it takes time. In fact, psychologists have outlined five Stages of Change that are used to identify how ready an individual is to tackle his or her negative health behaviors. These stages include

• Precontemplation
• Contemplation
• Preparation
• Action
• Maintenance

Notice that the first three stages are all centered around getting ready and realizing the need for change, whereas the last two focus on actually changing the behavior and maintaining the change. This is a long-term process; success will not—and should not—happen overnight. Truth be told, change is something we all need time to warm up to.

Modifying Your Behavior with Goals

One of the most successful interventions in modifying behavior is goal setting. The entire process encourages gradual change. If proper procedures are used, goal setting can serve to increase energy, effort, and focus.

One of the main reasons goal setting works in behavior modification is that the process creates a never-ending chain of events. In setting goals, you identify obstacles, which help you secure commitment to your goals, which helps you develop an action plan, which—once started—offers feedback on goal attainment, which helps you evaluate goal attainment, which leads to reinforcement of goal attainment, which allows you to set new goals when you are ready!

This blog was written by Anna Hiple. Meet our blogging fitness specialists at the NIFS website.

With more and more studies indicating just how dangerous to health sitting at a desk can be, incorporating small bouts of physical activity throughout the workday is as important as ever.

For the employee, taking breaks stimulates both the mind and body, combats stress, and helps ward off the monotony that can permeate a workday. In turn, the company is rewarded with healthy workers who earn and save them money through increased productivity and reduced health care costs!

Take a look at some of the following suggestions for quick ways to add exercise in the office:

EASY:

• Walk at any opportunity. Take the stairs, visit a coworker, or go for a walk on a lunch break.
• Instead of a desk chair, try a stability ball! Your core and posture will thank you.
• Perform short bouts of stationary movement (jumping jacks, marches, jump-rope simulation, lunges, etc.).

EASIER:

• Stand at any opportunity. Pace while on a phone call. If your company provides workstations that allow employees to stand or even walk on a treadmill while working, take advantage!
• Think about how you can turn your office into your own mini-gym. Perform chair squats and desk presses (similar to a push-up, with hands on the edge of the desk), chair triceps dips, and shoulder and arm exercises (shoulder presses, bicep curls) with anything heavy.  

EASIEST:

• Without even having to move from the chair, stretch and take some deep breaths to relieve tension. Focus on all major muscle groups.
• Contract, hold, and relax different muscle groups, such as the abdominals and glutes.

Which of these exercises would mesh best with your schedule?  

This blog was written by Jenna Pearson. Meet our blogging fitness specialists at the NIFS website.

We all know that emotional eating can sabotage even the greatest of weight-loss efforts. Typically we envision emotions that coincide with emotional eating to be primarily negative. New research, however, shows that positive emotions can also have an influence on what we choose to eat.

The Journal of Consumer Research recently published findings in an article titled “Helpful Hopefulness: The Effect of Future Positive Emotions on Consumption” that suggest happy people are more likely to snack on candy bars, whereas hopeful people choose more often to snack on fruit.

Personality Traits and Their Impact on Food Choices

To fully understand the relationships that exist between positive emotions and food choices, researchers dissected the traits that classify personalities as happy and/or hopeful. They found that those with hopeful personality traits focus mainly on the future, while people with happy personalities tend to beam from past achievements. In looking toward the future, hopeful people choose more health-conscious snacks, and also exhibit greater levels of self-control than their happy, prideful counterparts who are simply “living for the moment.”

Adjusting Your Attitude Will Improve Your Choices

The relationship between happiness and food choices literally creates an emotional rollercoaster. In addition to the preceding research, scientists have studied the emotional side-effects of food, and have found intriguing results: Participants who consumed apples reported feelings of satisfaction, happiness, and heightened energy, while individuals who ate chocolate cited the same joyous feelings; however, they were closely followed by feelings of guilt.

So what do we make of this? Karen Page Winterich and Kelly L. Haws, the authors of the “Helpful Hopefulness” study offer this conclusion: “The next time you’re feeling well, don’t focus too much on all the good things in the past. Instead, keep that positive glow and focus on your future, especially all the good things you imagine to come. Your waistline will thank you!” Couldn’t have said it better myself!

Many corporations, spurred by corporate wellness initiatives, are going with healthier cafeteria and vending options. What does your workplace offer, candy bar or fruit bar?

This blog was written by Anna Hiple. Meet our blogging fitness specialists at the NIFS website.

We’re right in the heart of blueberry season, so it’s a great opportunity to look at what makes this delicious summertime favorite so nutritious.

Blueberries are constantly receiving positive press, and deservedly so: their antioxidant power ranks them among the top “super foods” that provide vital health benefits. According to WebMD and the American Dietetic Association, blueberries boast the power to help prevent cancer, heart disease, and high cholesterol, and can benefit the immune system, cognitive function, eye health, and digestion. Their antioxidant content and high levels of fiber; vitamins A, E, and C; potassium; and manganese provide these benefits.

Are Blueberries a New Secret Weight Loss Weapon?

If the previously mentioned health benefits weren’t enough to send you hurrying to the produce section of the nearest supermarket, what about the fact that a recent study has shown promise for the blueberry in its ability to fight obesity on a molecular level? According to a recent study at Texas Woman’s University, polyphenols (a type of antioxidant) from blueberries hindered the development of adipose (fat) cells in mice. The effects were dependent on the size of the dose; the highest dose had the most impact on the cells.

Further studies are needed, as the jury is still out on the potential effects of polyphenol doses in humans. However, one can’t help but wonder: is the ability to bottle a blueberry’s nutritional power on the horizon?

In the meantime, the old-fashioned way of consuming your polyphenols through a diet rich in unprocessed foods such as fruits, vegetables, nuts, and seeds (and even wine, tea, coffee, and chocolate!) should certainly be adequate. In fact, Mother Nature may see to it that this remains the best means, as it appears that there are polyphenols that cannot be extracted that are an important part of these foods’ nutritional value.

Healthy and Delicious Ways to Enjoy Blueberries

Think about simple ways that you can add more blueberries to your diet. They make great toppings for yogurt, cottage cheese, ice cream, cold cereal, and oatmeal. Add them to smoothies and fruit salads, or simply enjoy a handful for dessert or a snack. They’re most nutritious in their raw state, but adding them to pancakes, waffles, muffins, breads, and more will still add a sweet, nutritious burst of flavor.

This blog was written by TJ McAloon. Meet our blogging fitness specialists at the NIFS website.

According to this Washington Post article, "Federal health officials unveiled plans to replace the warnings that cigarette packs began carrying 25 years ago with new versions using images that could include emaciated cancer patients, diseased organs and corpses.”

What that means is no more cool-looking cowboys and cartoon camels on your pack of cigarettes. Those easy-on-the-eyes images will be replaced with a cowboy or Joe the Camel in a hospital bed or with their oxygen tank.

But the real question to ask the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is why after 25 years are they taking away the Surgeon General’s warnings? Why have they adopted this picture over lengthy worded warnings?

One answer could be because we do not take time to read warnings, instructions, or really anything.

Take a second and think about the last time you read the instruction manual to anything. Does anyone take the time to actually read along in emergency guide on an airplane in case of an actual emergency? No, you just sit there and wait until you are allowed to turn back on your iPod, iPhone, computer, or whatever electronic device they made you turn off.

It is a smart move by the FDA to go to the pictures. For example, why does the Stop sign work? Because it’s in big white letters as just one word: “STOP.” Even then people don’t read that and blow right the sign!

This new plan will be in place in October 2012. Now people have no excuse when they get sick or have problems from smoking. It’s now their fault for not seeing the warnings of what can happen from prolonged use of smoking. Get the picture?

What is your workplace wellness program doing to encourage a nonsmoking lifestyle?

This blog was written by Penny Pohlmann, MS. Meet our blogging fitness specialists at the NIFS website.

The Food Marketing Institute and Grocery Manufacturers Association announced in January that a new voluntary “front-of-pack” nutritional information system will be seen on food products this year. These nutritional keys are different from the standard nutritional label typically found on the back or side of a box or container, in that they are large symbols that inform the consumer about the nutritional information on the front of a product.

The four basic icons that display the calorie, saturated fat, sodium, and sugar content in one serving of a particular product may prove to be helpful for quick product comparison and informed decision making. A campaign to help consumers learn about the new system will launch this fall.

Do you think this new system to deliver simplified information about your food will help you make better nutritional decisions? The GMA reports that a similar labeling system exists in the UK and 63% of consumers say they use the information to make choices when they purchase food.

Employers can play a huge role in helping their employees make healthy nutritional choices at work by not only educating the about food labels but by providing discounts for healthy food options. A qualified corporate wellness company can help you build a worksite wellness program that serves your employees by providing nutritional, fitness, and stress-management programs that lead them toward a healthier lifestyle.

This blog was written by Dan Walker. Meet our blogging fitness specialists at the NIFS website.

If you thought your child’s grades and college choice were the most important things to worry about in their adolescence, think again. Unhealthy habits picked up during the preteen and teen years can lead to health problems later in life, a recent study found. The most notable problem among these is high cholesterol levels, or dyslipidemia.

Smoking, poor cardiovascular fitness, and carrying around extra body fat were all significantly correlated with dyslipidemia later in early adulthood. If you think your child might be heading in this direction, here are three keys to help turn them around:

• Get active together as a family. Go for bike rides, play in the yard, and move in other fun ways to show them how much fun exercise can really be when you find something you like. Now is the time to ingrain the habit of regular physical activity in their life.
• Practice what you preach. The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree, so if you are carrying around a few extra pounds yourself or you smoke, how likely is it that your children won’t?
• Encourage a healthy, nutritious diet whenever you can. You can’t control your child’s eating when they’re not at home, but odds are you can when they are (unless they want to fork over the extra money to buy their own groceries!). Get them used to eating healthy foods lower in fat and cholesterol while they are young so they will hopefully stick with them as they age.

Although it may seem your children can eat anything and everything under the sun without gaining any weight, they may in fact just be setting themselves up for disaster later in life. Help them establish healthy habits now while not picking up unhealthy ones.

You want to help and guide your kids in their schooling and set them up for a secure future. But what are you doing to help guide them away from having to take medications such as Lipitor? See your corporate wellness program for more help.

This blog was written by Veronica Hofman. Meet our blogging fitness specialists at the NIFS website.

Everyone knows that sunscreen is important…right? Everyone uses it everyday as they should…right? Wrong! I think everyone knows they should use sunscreen regularly, but the truth is many people don’t!

Let’s hope that if people are sitting at the beach all day they will think to use it, but there are many circumstances in which sunscreen should be used but just isn’t. I recently went on a several-hour car ride and although I do wear sunscreen on my face, my arm and shoulder were red from the sun coming through the sunroof!

Why Sunscreen Is Crucial for Your Health

Now that summer is upon us, it is time to start a new routine that includes sunscreen. The FDA has released new rules for sunscreen makers. There are many reasons to include sunscreen in your day: It helps protect against

• burns
• premature aging
• wrinkles
• And of course, cancer

The most common type of skin cancer is melanoma, and it is also the leading cause of skin cancer deaths. Although more common in fair-skinned blonde and redheads, melanoma can affect anyone. It is also more common in those who have had a severe burn in the past and those who are exposed to the sun very often. But again, it can affect anyone. And who really wants wrinkles?

Tips for Sunscreen Use

So here are some sunscreen tips:

• Apply sunscreen approximately 30 minutes before being in the sun.
• Remember to reapply sunscreen after swimming or strenuous exercise.
• Apply sunscreen often throughout the day if you work outdoors, and wear hats and protective clothing.

Click here for more information about sunscreen and what to consider when choosing your SPF!

Does your company have onsite walking paths, or hold meetings outdoors on a nice day? Consider the health and wellness of your employees by providing sunscreen as a corporate wellness program benefit!

This blog was written by Lisa Larkin. Meet our blogging fitness specialists at the NIFS website.

We have been told for years to stay out of the sun because of its aging effect on our skin and bodies. Finally, there's a benefit to being out in the sun and eating lots of sushi! Sunshine and salmon are the two best sources of vitamin D. You may want to reconsider a little bit of sunshine to prevent some common diseases as people age.

The Carotenoids in Age-Related Eye Disease Study, CAREDS, was performed to research the 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels in the blood. These levels were associated with early development of age-related macular degeneration, which is a common cause of eyesight loss in the elderly.

Studies have also found that vitamin D is linked to reducing the risks of Alzheimer’s, depression, bone fractures, multiple sclerosis, lupus, fibromyalgia, diabetes, heart disease, and several major cancers. Aging can be scary, but I think we need to be more aware of our vitamin D intake.

You heard it right: It’s okay to sit in the sun (with sunscreen, of course) for a little bit. And it’s okay to treat yourself to a nice seafood dinner.

Check with your corporate health and wellness team for more information about how to incorporate vitamin D into your diet.