See how Corporate Fitness Works management partner Humana has successfully engaged individuals in worksite programs and intiatives with a measured impact on health and behavior change. Corporate Fitness Works provides Humana with on-site management of employee fitness centers with an integrated service approach that complements Humana’s corporate wellness initiatives.

In late January, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) in conjunction with Health and Human Services (HHS) announced the 2010 Dietary Guidelines for Americans.  Updated every five years, the 2010 release marks the 7^th edition of the federal government issued nutritional guidelines to promote good health, reduce disease risks and lower overweight/obesity prevalence across the nation.  Due to the rise in dietary related diseases associated with excess body weight and inactivity habits, the newly released guidelines have a heightened emphasis on managing weight by better balancing calories with physical activity and healthy eating habits.

The 2010 Dietary Guidelines for Americans (DGA) feature 23 recommendations with 6 additional guidelines for specific populations and may be viewed in their entirely at http://www.dietaryguidelines.gov/.  Per the intent for the American public to adopt these interrelated recommendations for healthy eating, the HHS and USDA published Executive Summary state the combined guidelines identify with two primary concepts:

1)      Maintain calorie balance over time to achieve and sustain a healthy weight

2)      Focus on consuming nutrient-dense foods and beverages

While physical activity has been a component to recommendations of years’ past, there are key differences in the new guidelines..  Recommendations for balancing calories to manage weight centralize on the need to control total calorie intake to match daily energy needs and by being more physically active at all stages of life.  The guidelines promote Americans to increase physical activity and reduce time spent in sedentary behaviors.  The first ever inclusion of research and recommendations for building healthy eating patterns has also been combined with the guidelines to help Americans be more conscious of what, when, why and how much they eat, driving deliberate choices for improved activity and calorie intake.  Recommended amounts of physical activity cited in the DGA have also been revised to correlate to the Federal Government Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans, released for the first time in 2008.

Driving Americans to consume more nutrient-dense foods and beverages, the 2010 DGA identify foods and food components to reduce as well as those foods and nutrients we need to increase.  Key recommendations align with eating more fruits and vegetables, making ‘half your grains whole, selecting fat-free or low-fat dairy, and eating a variety of proteins including seafood, lean meats, poultry, eggs, nuts, beans and peas’.  In terms of areas to limit, specific attention has been placed on reducing sodium intake.  The average American diet contains 3,400 mg of sodium per day, well above the 2,300 mg/day maximum recommendation.  For adults over age 51 and those of any age who are African American or have hypertension, diabetes, or chronic kidney disease should further reduce sodium to <1,500 mg/day.  As stated in the DGA summary, this accounts for over half the U.S. population.  Limiting consumption of saturated fats (10% of daily calories), cholesterol (300 mg/day), little to no trans fats, while avoiding foods with solid fats and added sugars, and limiting consumption of foods containing refined grains, are all consistent with the 2010 DGA.

 Additionally, the 2010 guidelines pose a broader call to action aiming beyond individual awareness by targeting larger sectors of influence to improve community-wide physical activity and eating habits.  An entire section of the guidelines acknowledges how environmental factors influence food, beverage and physical activity choices among America’s youth and adult populations.  Consistent with other national health agendas from the Surgeon General and Healthy People 2020, the 2010 DGA engages a range of sectors from government, health care, community, schools and workplace employers, to take action and create environments that provide access to and facilitate behavior change for lifelong healthier eating and physical activity habits. 

Employers can answer this call to action by implementing worksite initiatives and policies that promote employee participation in daily exercise, provide access to health and fitness facilities, as well as offer cafeteria menus and vending machines with healthier meal and snack options.  Corporate Fitness Works consulting and management services help all types of organizations implement initiatives like these, coming together to create environments that support healthier, more active worksites and communities.  Click here to take action now!

Last January, the U.S. Surgeon General, Regina Benjamin MD, issued her Vision for a Healthy and Fit Nation that she described in a USHHS Press Release as her “grassroots effort to commit to changes that promote the health and wellness of our families and communities.”  Further noting the rise in obesity as a public health crisis, the Surgeon General’s vision incorporates six key recommendations to take action against obesity by better enabling healthy lifestyle habits in nutrition and physical activity.

Among these six recommendations is Creating Healthy Worksites, establishing work environments where it’s easier for employees to participate in exercise and make healthy eating choices. From the press release description for healthy worksites, The Surgeon General more specifically urges employers to “implement wellness programs that promote healthy eating in cafeterias, encourage physical activity through group classes and create incentives for employees to participate”. 

The 21 page vision further justifies cost effectiveness and importance for implementing workplace health and fitness programs.  Considering the majority of employed American’s spend vast amounts of time at their workplace, the Surgeon General identifies it as an ideal venue for intervention.  Employer cost benefit for implementing initiatives and programs that encourage exercise and healthy eating in the workplace is noted per the correlation between obesity prevalence and reduced productivity as well as increased health care costs.  Some of the attributes listed with the vision for creating healthy worksites call upon employers to:

• Establish creative wellness programs with on-going employee challenges
• Create culture of wellness integrating messages about benefits of physical activity and healthy eating
• Provide opportunities and incentives for physical activities through onsite facilities, group classes or personal training, outdoor exercise areas, walking paths, and stairwell usage
• Make healthy food and beverages available and affordable
• Become active partners with local community health groups/coalitions
• Sponsor community health events

Looking ahead, Surgeon General Benjamin continues to advocate physical activity and the importance of fitting exercise into a busy schedule.  Recently dubbed by FITNESS Magazine as one of our nation’s top ten 2011 Champions of Health and Fitness, she quotes exercise as “the new medicine”, promoting that even 30-minutes a day provides substantial benefits.  In the article, Surgeon General Benjamin notes her goals for shifting focus away from the “negative conversation about disease” with less talk of what people can’t do, “to a positive conversation for being healthy and fit” by talking more about what they enjoy doing.    

The Surgeon General’s Vision for a Healthy and Fit Nation may be viewed in its entirety at http://www.surgeongeneral.gov/.  

Corporate Fitness Works is an established leader in helping corporations develop and implement worksite health and fitness initiatives as identified in the Surgeon General’s report.  Click here to learn more.