Tag Archives: diabetes

Alzheimer’s Disease and Oxidative Stress

September 2, 2019well-beingAlzheimer's disease, Alzheimer’s Disease is the 6th leading cause of death in the United States, antioxidant defenses, cancers, diabetes, free radicals, glutathione, increase glutathione, increase glutathione by 300%, inflammation, master antioxidant, methylation, oxidative stress, ravages if inflammation, the brain is an easy target, ways to increase glutathioneBestinCorporateHealth

Alzheimer’s Disease and Oxidative stress

Alzheimer’s Disease hits an estimated 5.8 million Americans of all ages have (Alzheimer’s Association). Now, an estimated 5.8 million Americans of all ages are living with Alzheimer’s dementia. By 2050, this is expected to be 14 million This number includes an estimated 5.6 million people age 65 and older and approximately 200,000 individuals under age 65 who have younger-onset Alzheimer’s.

Alzheimer’s Disease is the 6th leading cause of death in the United States.
One in three seniors die with Alzheimer’s and it kills more than breast cancer and prostate cancer combined
In 2019 Alzheimer’s is costing the nation $290 billion. By 2050 that is expected to rise to $1.1 trillion
Among people age 70, 61% of those with Alzheimer’s dementia are expected to die before the age of 80 compared with 30% of people without Alzheimer’s — a rate twice as high
The saddest stat of all: Only 16% of seniors receive cognitive assessments in doctors’ checkups.

Harvard: Inflammation is the unifying link between all diseases – Mental & physical. Oxidative stress, if uncontrolled leads to inflammation.

Quick review of oxidative stress (I have many articles here to check out on oxidative stress). An imbalance in our redox state as a result of increased free radicals and a decrease in antioxidant defense. Free radicals are molecules that contains one or more unpaired electrons in its outer shell, trying to rebalance itself by snatching another molecule’s electrons. This imbalance causes a significant decrease in the effectiveness of antioxidant defenses, such as glutathione.

There are many causes of oxidative stress, both endogenous & exogenous, and unfortunately in unavoidable. Again, please refer to my many other articles here.

Pubmed: Tissues and organs, particularly the brain, a vulnerable organ, are affected by ROS due to its composition. The brain is largely composed of easily oxidizable lipids while featuring a high oxygen consumption rate. In other words – the brain is an easy target to suffer the ravages of inflammation.

Now: If we all learned about oxidative stress, how to minimize it – maybe we could prevent a lot of these cases of Alzheimer’s – and the other top diseases killing us?

More and more research is proving Alzheimer’s disease pathology is of oxidative stress. This Alzheimer’s Disease related increase in oxidative stress has been attributed to decreased levels of the brain antioxidant, glutathione.

A 2018 human study published in the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease, showed glutathione to be significantly depleted in Alzheimer’s patients compared to those without Alzheimer’s. Glutathione, referred to as the master antioxidant, is accepted as the omnipotent anti-oxidant that protects the brain from free radical damage. Researchers are hoping these findings will give us another measure to use when diagnosing potential for the advancement of Alzheimer’s disease or recognizing those that are in the early stages of advancement.

Ways to increase glutathione:

Spinach, avocados, asparagus
sulphur rich foods: Beef, fish, poultry. To a lesser extent vegetables such as cruciferous vegetables and allium vegetables (garlic and onion, don’t brown it!)
vitamin C rich foods
Selenium rich foods (please no Selenium supplements – can be toxic)

Glutathione deficiency is also seen in immune function issues, and is very much implicated in the aging process, DNA damage, and of course is a huge cause of oxidative damage. Glutathione also plays a key role in energy production and methylation, two integral processes at the core of normal cellular function. Methylation is an important part of many cellular repair functions, including the recycling of glutathione and detoxification.

Heart disease, stroke, cancers, diabetes…. all of our top killers are, oxidative stress is a major factor in all of them. Learning how to properly control oxidative stress, is really what a proactive lifestyle is all about.

There are other ways to increase glutathione from within your own body, by as much as 300%.

There is a pathway in the body that unfortunately decreases with age, but now due to medical technology, can be activated.

Combatting Oxidative Stress with NRF2 Pathway:

Complicated – but simply, our inner NRF2 pathway triggers our antioxidative genes. It is completely accepted the NRF2 pathway lowers oxidative stress, however, it also dramatically decreases with age. The NRF2 powers provide a million times the antioxidative power. There are hundreds of studies, peer reviewed studies that prove the incredible power of activating our NRF2 pathway. The truth is – there really is only one way to activate the NRF2 pathway – and that is with the natural supplements that have been studied, proven and accepted by our respected medical institutions.

Washington State University refers to these NRF2 activators as the “the most extraordinary therapeutic and most extraordinary preventative breakthrough in history of medicine.” These activators are recommended by the American Heart Association and have earned the accolades of hundreds of peer reviewed studies.

Our cells are forced to confront the daily cacophony of life, from oxidative stress. We have the ability to orchestrate the musicians, our cells, into the symphony of life. Contact me to lower oxidative stress by up to 40% in the first month. My Bonus for the corporate world – free educational webinars on understanding oxidative stress and inflammation – and really managing and preventing disease. email me for details.

Oxidative Stress at the Root of Disease

In Health,

Shira

Shira@BestInCorporateHealth.com. Set Up a Call

The supplement like a flu shot against oxidative stress…..

Why are we not controlling chronic illness? We must control the wildfire of inflammation and lower oxidative stress. We know oxidative stress is at the root of chronic illness such as cancer, heart disease, depression, arthritis, stroke, diabetes. Inflammation ages us and leaves us susceptible to disease….We take a flu shot to prevent the flu – one simple supplement to lower your oxidative stress by as much as 40%. 7 patents, 24 peer reviewed studies on pubmed, accolades from American Heart Association, Mayo Clinic, National Institute on Aging….Washington State: “may well become the most extraordinary therapeutic and most extraordinary preventative breakthrough in the history of medicine.”

Shira Litwack, Corporate Program Designer — Shira Litwack, BSc, Corporate Wellness Specialist, Chronic Care recovery, medical exercise, holistic nutrition, addiction recovery

Shira Litwack: Corporate Wellness Specialist, Chronic Care prevention & management program design, health technologies, population health management on 3 continents.

There is an estimated 750 Billion dollars in U.S. health care waste every year. Our many technologies assure you are not contributing to that $750 billion. Health technology serving the continuum from prevention through chronic illness management.

Lifestyle Management Medical Cost Transparency Best Specialists Choosing benefits Chronic Care Management

Articles featured in: Corporate Wellness Association, European Registry of Exercise Professionals, The National Post, Investment Executive Magazine, Directory of Greater Toronto, Canadian Leukemia & Lymphoma Association, Prostate Cancer Canada, Multiple Sclerosis Society of Canada, Anytime Fitness, Today’s Black Woman, Today’s Seniors, Medical Fitness Network, FORCE (Facing Our Risk of Cancer Empowered), Willow (Breast & Hereditary Cancer Support),Myeloma Canada, Cancer Exercise Training Institute, Urban Poling for Breast Cancer, ROW – Recovery on Water for Breast Cancer, Sirius XM Doctor Radio

Health vs. Wellness – Avoiding Health Presenteeism

October 8, 2017employee performance, well-beingbiometrics, blood pressure, blood sugar, corporate health programs, diabetes, digestive health, engagement, genomic testing, Global corporate chalenge, happy employees, Health vs. wellness, healthcare providers, inflammation, mapping our DNA, medical diagnostics, metabolic syndrome, optimizing our immune system, oxidative stress, performing employees, pre-diabetes, predictor of productivity, presenteeism, production of serotonin, ROI, role emotions play in business, Rx for health, science of happy, stress, talent retention, wellnessBestinCorporateHealth

Health Vs. Wellness…What is the Difference?

Health vs. wellness, the answer is in the past and present and creating a better future.
I heard a brilliant expression from a colleague this week – a number of years ago a doctor told her she was healthy, not well. What is the difference?
Healthy: not diseased…… Wellness brings out the deeper meaning of health, which can be glossed over in health programs. By differentiating between health vs. wellness, we expose the many underlying health saboteurs, which unknowingly compromise our health.

Health vs. wellness wellness programs Best in corporate health — Health vs. Wellness A symbiosis for social, emotional & physiological engagement

Think of wellness as the opportunity for health engagement. The word “health” conjures up visions of restrictive, long lists of ” I shouldn’t”, no fun to many people. Wellness can provide the physiological, emotional and social engagement and camaraderie for sustainability and adherence to a health and wellness program…and ROI.

The World Health Organization (WHO) defined health in it’s 1948 constitution as “a state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.” Sounds Utopic.
In pursuit of the broader WHO goals for health evolved our healthcare system. The healthcare system is financially depleted, and has become a “sick care” system. We diagnose, try to fix illness. Whether we get caught up in blaming the politicians for our healthcare crisis, we cannot ignore the erosion is largely due to unnecessary illness. Going forward, to achieve the intent of healthcare, we need to be inclusive of a thoroughly articulated view, role and definition of wellness.

Healthcare and medical diagnostics are vital, however, we need to all become our own advocates – and take charge of constantly seeking further wellness. Looking at out health is more of a current status. And whereas we know that certain diagnoses such as metabolic syndrome, pre-diabetes, carcinoma in situ, are definite calls to more proactive action -the goal of wellness is to prevent the pre-diseased state.
What is wellness? Wellness is the #1 opportunity we have in our lives. We have hundreds of options within our control to prevent even a pre-diseased state.
Take a look at these relationships:

health vs. wellness
exercise vs. physical activity
diet vs. nutrition
sex vs. intimacy

They are all often used interchangeably. Comparing does not necessitate an adversarial tone, rather, there are nuances that suggest a symbiotic relationship. They are subsets within each other, necessary partners promoting each other.

Medical diagnostics catch disease or impending disease. Genomic testing is our only diagnostic to provide the ultimate wellness, by mapping our DNA. Going to our healthcare providers, being told everything looks good, nothing is wrong – is fantastic news not to be taken for granted.We all know, we sill might not feel well. We might:

have a haze about us…something is just not right
feeling stressed and drained
erratic appetite
Feeling a lack of control in ourselves
Not being as focused, energized and productive as we used to be
Don’t feel rested and restored
Moodiness
Or, we could just be in robomode- so busy in our day to day routines, surviving each day and task as it comes, we are unaware that we are not optimized

This general malaise in health is what I call health presenteeism. We know work presenteeism is being at work in body – but not being fully there in mind – not fully functioning and is usually attributed to health issues.

Health vs. Wellness – overcoming Health Presenteeism…..

Digging Deeper
We all know the Rx for health: Don’t smoke, eat right, exercise, good sleep, manage stress. Go for regular physician check ups. Imperative. Why are these imperative to wellness? Let’s start digging.

Optimizing our digestive health. We all know the cliche we are what we eat. What his really implies is we are what we eat, digest and absorb. Our digestive tract serves many complex functions of our health. Hippocrates said “all disease begins in the gut”. Our gut performs an infinite number of daily tasks including digestion, absorption, influencing our mood with the production of serotonin, is the first step of our immune system……Our digestive tract takes thousands of attacks daily from poor food choices, digestive strain, medications, ingestion of toxins, viruses and bacteria, stress…and a central focus of our wellness efforts must be on optimizing our digestive tract.
Eliminating physiological stressors in our lives.
Oxidative stress and inflammation: Proven repeatedly to be at the root of all of our chronic illnesses.
Optimizing our Immune system
Understanding what it takes to create a healthy inner ecosystem.
The science of happy. The #1 predictor of productivity is happiness. Happy is far more than accomplishing our goals. Happiness also must have wellness embedded into its roots. How does this impact our wellness programs? A 2016 study by Global Corporate Challenge (GCC) after surveying employees from 500 organizations in 70 countries found happy employees are more productive at work. The findings confirm the role emotions play in business, and that happiness is critical for productivity and talent retention and not a job perk or something that is just “nice to have.” The connection was clear: happy employees are high performing employees.
Enjoying and embracing wellness. None of us are looking for another miserable task in our lives. Wellness practices must be engaging, integrated into a person’s life, welcomed, and perceived as fun and of great value. If we are not feeling the rewards of our wellness efforts, and we feel these practices are another strain, they are erratic and short lived. Wellness should be freedom and liberation, not rigid, restrictive or inflexible.

Wellness is a state of mind. It is a desire to optimize our health, a partner in our raison d’être, a joie de vivre. Through wellness we put a jump in our steps and feel capable of compartmentalizing and managing the many challenges life inevitably serves.

When appreciating the symbiosis of health vs. wellness, it’s easier for us to appreciate why
our blood pressure and blood sugar are normal, our diagnostics and biometrics appear acceptable – but something is just not right. It must be stress is the usual conclusion – Yes – it is stress – but we need to look at stress at a much deeper level. True wellness is helping everyone to become their own health ambassador, helping them understand the many levels of wellness, far deeper than the superficialities. Even if we are eating right, exercising – there is great variance there, and maybe our overall wellness choices, when put together – are not nourishing us at the control centers of our body – our cells. Wellness comes from much deeper than our outer facade. Wellness comes from our cell-being.

Help control workforce oxidative stress: 7 patents, 24 peer reviewed studies on pubmed, accolades from American Heart Association, Mayo Clinic, National Institute on Aging….Washington State: “may well become the most extraordinary therapeutic and most extraordinary preventative breakthrough in the history of medicine.”

Cell-being creates our inner magic kingdom that is hostile to disease, and takes the cacophony of our daily lives and creates a symphonic inner ecosystem.

Personalized Health vs. wellness programs…..Yes…..We get VERY personal……right down to the DNA….

Corporate health programs…what a wonderful way to affordably make the world a happier, healthier place.

Articles featured in: ezines, ArticlesInk, European Registry of Exercise Professionals, The National Post, Investment Executive Magazine, Directory of Greater Toronto, Canadian Leukemia & Lymphoma Association, Prostate Cancer Canada, Multiple Sclerosis Society of Canada, Anytime Fitness, Today’s Black Woman, Today’s Seniors, Medical Fitness Network, FORCE (Facing Our Risk of Cancer Empowered), Willow (Breast & Hereditary Cancer Support),Myeloma Canada, Cancer Exercise Training Institute, Urban Poling for Breast Cancer, ROW – Recovery on Water for Breast Cancer, Sirius XM Doctor Radio

Frailty – A Leading Cause of Death and Disease

June 15, 2017employee performance, well-beingabdominal fat, absenteeism, age related loss of muscle, build muscle, cancer, cause of death, chronic illness, corporate health programs, depression cost millions, desk job, diabetes, disease and death, frailty, geriatric care, glucose control, heart disease, hormonal balance, lean muscle mass, lymphatic system, medical syndrome, muscle mass, musculoskeletal injuries, obesity, oxidative stress, risk of infections, sarcopenia, strength training, uncontrolled blood glucose, wellness program, workplace absenteeismBestinCorporateHealth

Frailty…The Need for Muscle Nurturance

Frailty, sadly because usually so unnecessary, is a leading cause of death. Frailty is usually referred to as a comorbidity…but if we start looking at it as a cause of disease and death, maybe prevention of frailty will explicitly be addressed and valued just as prevention of heart disease, cancer, obesity, diabetes and all of our other chronic illnesses.

The first answer that comes to mind when asked the #1 cause of death is always cancer, heart disease, some kind of chronic illness.

I am asking you to dig a little deeper understanding frailty as a cause of disease and death.

What leads to a number of the causes of cancer and heart disease……..If we focus on prevention of frailty, how many other illnesses could we prevent?

We have to connect dots here. Remember, according to the CDC 80% of chronic illness is lifestyle – not genetic.

A 2014 study by the Japanese Geriatric Society concluded:

“Frailty is strongly associated with higher mortality, especially among women. Among men, the association was explained by baseline functional capacity, comorbidity and lifestyle factors. Changes in frailty status should also be taken into consideration when planning geriatric care, as such changes could indicate a more rapid decline in health.”

We all know what frailty looks like and have an idea of what it is – but from a systemic perspective, frailty is a consequence of cumulative decline in multiple physiological systems over a lifespan.

According to Johns Hopkins, frailty increases the risk of infections, illnesses that have to be treated in the hospital, falls and disabilities, doubles the risk of surgical complications, lengthens hospital stays, and increases the odds of leaving forfeiting independence (moving to a nursing home or assisted-living facility) after a surgical procedure twentyfold.

So then, the next logical step is to ask ourselves, what caused the multiple physiological systems to break down. Please don’t say “old age”.

The brain, endocrine system, immune system and skeletal muscle are intrinsically inter-related and are currently the organ systems best studied in the development of frailty. While frailty is most often associated with the elderly, some old people never get frail. Experts now regard it as a medical syndrome.

Diagnosing frailty:

unintentional weight loss (10 or more pounds within the past year, muscle loss)
muscle loss and weakness
a feeling of fatigue
slow walking speed
low levels of physical activity

Imagine if we lived in a world where people nurtured their muscle mass as much as they nurtured other aspects of their life: finances, cars, wardrobes……

Muscle is the ultimate example in life of use it or lose it. At the ripe old age of 30 we start losing muscle mass if it is not worked…age related loss of muscle is called sarcopenia. However, many studies prove to us, and many people I personally know, we can build muscles at any age. People over 90 can build muscle.

Muscles deserve far more respect than they receive. For that reason, in every wellness program I include what I call “muscle nurturance”. Muscles are to be cherished through

food choices
exercise (yes we can destroy muscle tissue with incorrect exercise or overtraining)
Getting quality sleep
alcohol control
smoking – stop
certain medications

The misconceptions, lack of appreciation for our muscles is rampant, causing an avalanche of psychological and physiological demise. Just naming a few consequences of muscle loss, and yes, please excuse my brevity here!

Our metabolism: muscle burns more calories — even at rest — than body fat. Average: 10 pounds of muscle burns 50 calories in a day spent at rest, while 10 pounds of fat would burn 20 calories
Imperative for diabetes control: Muscle pulls sugar out of the blood to be used as fuel, lowering blood glucose levels.
For each 10% increase in the ratio of muscle mass to total body weight, there is an 11% reduction in insulin resistance and a 12% reduction in prediabetes. Prediabetes is a condition in which a person’s blood sugar is higher than normal, but not high enough to be diabetes. Ultimately, our muscles can help prevent diabetes.
Glucose control is imperative in prevention of all of our chronic diseases, including cancer and obesity
Control of oxidative stress
Uncontrolled blood glucose levels can cause us to make poor food choices
Lowering sugar intake, muscles will burn fat as a source of fuel
Strength training muscle does not have to be in a gym – it can be done in home or office, even with a desk job
There are numerous forms of activity that build muscle, not just weight lifting
Numerous studies prove strength training is critical in prevention and recovery from depression. Studies from Harvard & Duke concurred depressed people who follow a structured strength training protocol were able to overcome depression without medication, and for every 50 minutes of exercise per week the rate of depression decreased by half. This has been attributed to many physiological mechanisms triggered by strength training.
Strength training provides better quality sleep, and quality sleep is vital for muscle mass
Our lymphatic system (immune) is dependent on our pumping muscles to move the lymph throughout the body
Our heart is a muscle that needs to be trained, through exercise
strength training strengthens bones as well – drastic reduction in osteoporosis
studies from numerous institutions concur our focus and productivity our greatly improved with strength training and a higher lean mass ratio. This is attributed again to many benefits including glucose metabolism and hormonal balance, reduction of stress responses…….
Hundreds of studies on strength training and physiologically reducing stress
Muscles are one of our greatest regulators of hormonal balance…..this itself has hundreds of health benefits….
Of course the obvious: our physical strength, mobility…all dependent on muscle
Musculoskeletal injuries and depression cost millions in workplace absenteeism. Muscle work has a very strong role in the prevention and recovery of both
Alcohol can destroy muscle mass, in a number of ways
Harvard School of Public Health study: followed 10,500 US men aged over 40 for 12 years and found that of all the activities they did, weight training for 20 minutes three times a week had the greatest effect on preventing age-related abdominal fat.
Strong muscles help us breathe, oxygenate our body.

Muscle is far more than looking good. Going for walks is great – however, it does not replace muscle work. Muscle training is often called the “new running for the over 40s.

Frailty occurs with loss of muscle. When we look at this partial list, no wonder frailty is associated with cumulative decline of physiological & psychological systems, and death. Our muscles are front and center to every aspect of our health and wellness.

Corporate Health Programs – What an Incredible Way to Make the World A Healthier Happier Place…..so we make them affordable to EVERYONE……

Chief Health Enthusiast – Best In Corporate Health

Employee Wellness Toronto, Ontario – But offered worldwide!

Shira is regularly consulted by Naturopaths, oncologists, health coaches on cancer exercise and exercise adherence.
Has assembled over 20 health and fitness professionals with varying specialties to bring to corporate wellness programs
Platforms include: Speaking, One-one/group health coaching, Retreats, Course development for in house delivery, Metrics to measure success available, Partners always included
Now offering live interactive webinars, just as if each participant has a personal health coach – making corporate wellness programs affordable to all.
Shira has been interviewed & published in hundreds of resources over the last 12 years:

Corporate Responsibility And Health Centricity

May 18, 2017employee performance, well-beingbehavioral intervention, cancer, cardiovascular disease, chronic respiratory diseases, corporate health, corporate responsibility, Corporate wellness programs, corporate world, cutting-edge health technologies, diabetes, economic environment, employee-cantered approach, engage employee, global burden of disease, health centric, health centricity, health promoting workplace, healthcare transformation, healthier living, healthy environment, HRA, HRO, incentivize, inflammation ages us and leaves us susceptible to disease, insulin master hormone, leading cause of death, modifiable risk factors, NCD, Non communicable disease, Predictive care solutions, preventative healthcare, proactive health, Public health, risk factors, third party advisors, well-being of workers, World Economic Forum, world health organizationBestinCorporateHealth

Corporate Responsibility Through Preventative Healthcare

Enabling corporate responsibility is our duty as anyone who services the corporate world… third party advisors, HROs and yes, corporate wellness providers. We lead people to healthier, happier more productive lives, fulfilling on many levels a large part of corporate responsibility. Connecting employee health to larger societal health is vital. We all know the studies, healthy employees are more productive, less absenteeism and presenteeism. … As a company develops a more holistic understanding of how health and wellness are linked to other important social and environmental challenges, and business challenges, it creates an awakening to the many intricacies and facets of employee health. Where many corporate health models sabotage their own success – is weak follow through.

presenting in a manner that is supportive of participation
enabling implementation and adherence
incentivizing ➪for continual support and adherence & creating a corporate health culture

Our current model of healthcare is sick care, and sadly, employers are drowning by following this same path. Health care dollars are usurped from a reactive, episodic acute care model, and of course the long term needs and dollars of chronic care. We can find different dollar values thrown around, depending on which of the thousands of costs are being tallied, but suffice it to say chronic care costs, between care and lost productivity hundreds of billions yearly.

The massive opportunity for the health of society and our economy:

Preventive healthcare

Leading healthier lives (which is a sweeping statement) and stopping the onset of illness is the holy grail of healthcare transformation and sustainability. It is the ultimate investment companies can make. We all agree we are only as strong, resilient and energized as our people.

In terms of corporate health, the model of preventive care can be further defined for implementation and precision:

•Proactive care solutions: Providing solid, science based knowledge of healthier living, helping employees with implementation, adherence, provides a health centric motivating environment to respect the endless value of health. A proactive approach also ensures that preventive action is taken to intervene well before the onset of symptoms, far before illness. Proactive health should not be confused with diagnostics, which are a part of proactive health, but certainly not the only aspect of a proactive process.

•Predictive care solutions leverage cutting-edge health technologies and sophisticated gathering of data to not only stratify risk, but even predict risk and intervene even further upstream. This can be done through effective health risk assessments (HRA), metrics and reporting from the proactive tools. Predictive care solutions available and are a lost opportunity for health when not implemented. With the increased collection of personal health and lifestyle data and improved analytics, we can generate accurate insights earlier. This allows us to anticipate issues, pinpointing where behavioural intervention is needed and provide actions to take before risk factors even arise.

NCD: Non-infectious and non-transmissible diseases that may be caused by genetic or

Corporate Responsibility Preventative health employee wellness Best In Corporate Health — Breakdown NCD: Courtesy World Economic Forum

behavioral factors and generally have a slow progression (could have been incubating for years in which hopefully identified and prevented) and long duration. These include cardiovascular diseases, cancer, chronic respiratory diseases, and diabetes. According to the CDC, 80% of chronic illness is lifestyle, behavioral, however, people need to be made aware of what many of these behaviors and exposures are.

According to a study released in 2011 by the World Economic Forum, Harvard School of Public Health “The U.S. Government and Global Non-Communicable Disease (NCD) Efforts”:

NCDs are the leading causes of death and disability globally, killing more than three in five people worldwide and responsible for nearly half of the global burden of disease.
Among the leading causes of preventable illness and related disability
Cardiovascular diseases, cancer, chronic respiratory diseases, and diabetes account for about 80% of NCD deaths
NCDs are responsible for 3.9 million deaths each year in the Region of the Americas, representing 3⁄4 of all deaths.
An estimated 200 million people in the Americas are living with NCDs, which has a tremendous impact on their life, well-being, and ability to work. This, in turn, poses major challenges to the economy, the health system and other sectors of society.
If modifiable risk factors (behavioral) were eliminated, 80% of all heart disease, stroke, and type 2 diabetes would be prevented and over 40% of cancer would be prevented.
The causes of NCDs and their risk factors are largely determined by the social, physical and economic environment. Thus, combating NCDs requires action on the social determinants in a person’s environment, not just healthcare. Creating healthy environments and making healthy choices available and known, are critical.

Just a scary stat: Diabetes and Insulin, our master hormone: $245 Billion, Annually . Diabetes is 90% preventable

Conclusion from World Economic Forum study on Non Communicable Diseases:

A final thought: Economic policy-makers are naturally concerned about economic growth. The evidence presented in this report indicates that it would be illogical and irresponsible to care about economic growth and simultaneously ignore NCDs. Interventions in this area will undeniably be costly. But inaction is likely to be far more costly.”

Corporate wellness programs are potentially an affordable, very effective way to reduce the economic, personal and social burden of illness. Shifting to a preventive paradigm requires a holistic and employee-centred approach that involves participation and dedication from employers and employees. Again, we need to provide programs that

Provide solid science
Assess employee needs
Is supportive of corporate responsibility
Teach, don’t preach
Interaction on numerous levels vital to learning and sustainability
Engage the employee to participate
Models a corporate loyalty to the employee
Creates camaraderie & passion to infuse the corporate health culture
Inclusive of the science of change and behavioral modification
Implementation – providing employees the guidance for adherence, work/life integration, organization and time
Is inclusive of family support
Incentivize the employee for participation in a manner that is supportive of the employee’s health efforts and the health centric environment of the company
It HAS to be fun, invigorating, encouraging…not another miserable obligation and time demand in the employee’s life

Follow the hard science. A number of vague studies have been released stating that proactive health and wellness programs do not really impact the corporate bottom line. Where these myopic snapshot falls short…. …what are they measuring? Do they have an accurate, measurable value, scientific means of data collection as to illnesses that were prevented? Were they categorizing all corporate wellness initiatives into one lump? What were the measures of adherence? For these studies to deny the impact of preventative health education and implementation, is to deny greater studies lead by global health researchers and organizations….. Science proves that a strong proactive model for health which preempts illness, acute and chronic, is vital for health and economics.

World Health Organization on Corporate Responsibility:

Corporate Responsibility Best In Corporate Health — Courtesy World Health Organization

“The workplace directly influences the physical, mental, economic and social well-being of workers and in turn the health of their families, communities and society. It offers an ideal setting and infrastructure to support the promotion of health of a large audience. The health of workers is also affected by non-work related factors.”

“A health-promoting workplace recognizes that a healthy workforce is essential and integrates policies, systems and practices conducive to health at all levels of the organization. Rather than a series of projects, workforce health promotion is an ongoing process for improving work and health.”

Providing health information is a start, but only a start. Corporate responsibility affects: shareholders, customers, suppliers, employees and their families, communities, financiers, society…..and of course their own survival. The impact of health is omnipotent.

Corporate Responsibility with Health….Best In Corporate Health

The supplement like a flu shot against oxidative stress…..

Why are we not controlling chronic illness? We must control the wildfire of inflammation and lower oxidative stress. We know oxidative stress is at the root of chronic illness such as cancer, heart disease, depression, diabetes, arthritis….. inflammation ages us and leaves us susceptible to disease. ….We take a flu shot to prevent the flu – one simple supplement to lower your oxidative stress by as much as 40%. 7 patents, 24 peer reviewed studies on pubmed, accolades from American Heart Association, Mayo Clinic, National Institute on Aging….Washington State: “may well become the most extraordinary therapeutic and most extraordinary preventative breakthrough in the history of medicine.”

Chief Health Enthusiast – Best In Corporate Health

Employee Wellness Toronto, Ontario – But offered worldwide!

Shira is regularly consulted by Naturopaths, oncologists, health coaches on cancer exercise and exercise adherence.
Has assembled over 20 health and fitness professionals with varying specialties to bring to corporate wellness programs
Platforms include: Speaking, One-one/group health coaching, Retreats, Course development for in house delivery, Metrics to measure success available, Partners always included
Now offering live interactive webinars, just as if each participant has a personal health coach – making corporate wellness programs affordable to all.
Shira has been interviewed & published in hundreds of resources over the last 12 years:

Brain Fog..A Reversible Saboteur to Productivity

August 10, 2016employee performance, well-beingbrain fog, cause of cancer, cellular health, chemical exposures, chronic inflammation, diabetes, diet, employee engagement, employee productivity, exercise, health programs, heart disease, hypothalamus, mental confusion, mental muscle, metabolic syndrome, multitasking, neurodegenerative disease, neurotransmitters, oxidative stress, physical activity, poor sleep, time management, To DO, weight loss diet, wellness programBestinCorporateHealth

Delete Brain Fog …..Optimize Employee Engagement

Brain fog has a powerful hand in employee productivity

Brain fog can best be described as mental confusion – we just can’t focus, harness enough mental energy to push through and accomplish what we need to get done. We make comments of having a senior moment, that very tacky expression a “brain fart”, we’re stressed….yes as common as it is…..it doesn’t make it right. Besides being very frustrating, it can be another symptom of a state of oxidative stress and inflammation in the body.

When we dissect our concerns over employee productivity and employee engagement………..brain fog.

Brain fog is yet another symptom of oxidative stress. Oxidative stress underlies all of our chronic diseases and major health concerns in our world, including heart disease,neurodegenerative disease,diabetes, metabolic syndrome, depression, Alzheimer’s, anxiety……..and yes, oxidative stress is a major cause of cancer.

The trouble with many health programs is the emphasis on the superficial, the exterior – what we all immediately see. Yes, this is what many companies ask for in a employee wellness program. However, it is our job as employee health providers to take a look at each unique company, the dynamics, the individual employees, assess the situation, and come up with wellness program that addresses oxidative stressors. So not only are we minimizing brain fog, we are minimizing those components of oxidative stress that cause serious illnesses.

We have an endless list of oxidative stressors, which eventually can lead to chronic inflammation. The frustrating part – many people follow regiments which they believe to be healthy, however, the truth is they are creating more oxidative stress to the body, causing cellular damage. A few examples:

Diet: When focusing on a typical weight loss diet, unfortunately for a number of reasons we could be creating more oxidative stress on the body. Sure, we all get excited over weight loss, but there could be much better ways. Choosing the right foods is extremely important to fight brain fog and protect our cellular health
Exercise and physical activity: Just as with diet, the wrong exercise, or thinking sporadic exercise is physical activity, can be damaging
Chemical exposures: we need to look at the daily bombardment of chemical offenders
Poor sleep: I don’t just mean hours of sleep – its quality sleep that is truly restorative
Other lifestyle exposures to mutagens, carcinogens, toxins, viruses & bacteria that alter the performance of our DNA

The hypothalamus in the center of our brain is the body’s thermostat so to speak for a number of reasons. There are numerous ongoing studies looking at the intricacies of hypothalamic function in the presence of oxidative stress. The mitochondria of our cells need to harmonize with the hypothalamus and this metabolic dynamic duo is crippled, interfering with hormones and neurotransmitters production and regulation.

Multitasking vs. Time Management: Any new habits, lifestyle modifications, change, are close to useless to introduce if not providing a phase in process. Again, nobody is looking for another miserable task in their life and very few of us have time to burn. Just providing a list of “Do”s and “Don’ts” or “should”s and “should not”s is a job less than half done. Everybody is stressed multitasking work, family and a number of other pressing “To Do”s.

In order to build a cohesive, workplace environment, we need our team members to be physically, mentally and energetically optimized. We need to build their mental muscle.

Our challenge here – there is no test for brain fog, other than questionnaires, its not like we have a definitive blood test to say “You have brain fog!”. However, what we can do is work on the bigger picture, the oxidative stress.

At Best in Corporate Health, measuring for oxidative stress we consider to be a critical focal point of all of our corporate health programs. From lunch n learns, our live interactive webinars right up to speaking and retreats, getting control of oxidative stress is paramount. Oxidative stressors are cumulative, and our exposures are from known, identifiable sources, but there are many we are unaware of. Therefore, our approach must be to faithfully eradicate the ones we can. From brain fog to chronic disease, let’s dig deeper!

The supplement like a flu shot against oxidative stress…..

Corporate Health Programs – What an Incredible Way to Make the World A Healthier Happier Place…..so we make them affordable to EVERYONE……

Shira@BestInCorporateHealth.com

We look forward to customizing your employee wellness programs!

Chief Health Enthusiast – Best In Corporate Health

Shira is regularly consulted by Naturopaths, oncologists, health coaches on cancer exercise and exercise adherence.
Has assembled over 20 health and fitness professionals with varying specialties to bring to corporate wellness programs
Platforms include: Speaking, One-one/group health coaching, Retreats, Course development for in house delivery, Metrics to measure success available, Partners always included
Now offering live interactive webinars, just as if each participant has a personal health coach – making corporate wellness programs affordable to all.
Shira has been interviewed & published in hundreds of resources over the last 12 years:

Cancer Exercise Training Institute, Urban Poling for Breast Cancer, ROW – Recovery on Water for Breast Cancer

Shira Litwack, Medical fitness professional |Cancer Exercise Specialist|Personal & Corporate Health Coach | Fitness For Disease Recovery| Industry Expert Cancer Exercise

Director of International Relations Cancer Exercise Training Institute Master Trainer

Radio talk show host/Guest/Producer Health & Fitness Radio

BSc Psychology & Chemistry| Medical Exercise Specialist|Holistic Nutrition| Addiction Recovery|Total of 18 exercise designations