Tag Archives: employee wellness

Employee Engagement-Effects of Alcohol

Employee Engagement – The Role of Oxidative Stress ?

Institute for Employment Studies report quantified employee engagement: Organizations increasing engagement investment by just 10% can increase profits by approximately US $2,100 per employee, per year.

With all of the possible best efforts by an organization to create a culture of employee engagement, health and wellness, it can easily be sabotaged by the effects of …….oxidative stress.

Oxidative stress is rarely addressed, and if it is usually only once again by addressing the outer being. Truth is, this can sometimes create more oxidative stress on the body.

Employee Engagement Effects of Alcohol employee wellness Best In Corporate HealthChronic inflammation is a wildfire raging in the body. The blood vessels and internal organs and systems are affected. This inflammatory process leads to free radical damage and oxidative stress and is a culprit in aging, mental focus, depression & all of our chronic diseases. Our focus must be on addressing the cellular level of health.

There are hundreds of oxidative stressors attacking the body each day. What we need to do is to implement a plan to reduce exposure to the stressors, and strengthen the body to protect itself from bombardment.

Oxidative stressors weaken both physiological and psychological function in a number of ways, and are accepted as the root of chronic disease and ultimately longevity.

A thorough health & wellness program is one that helps employees over time with realistic

Corporate wellness programs from the cell with Best In Corporate Health
Employee wellness programs usually focus on the outer 2 layers. Inflammation and oxidative stress attacks the Cell-Being

implementation and integration of healthier lifestyle strategies. In a fast placed workplace environment combined with the challenges of balancing family, stress, anxiety and mood disturbances are the norm. Facts are not enough – in fact feeding a list of facts, “shoulds” and “should-nots” is irritating. Unfortunately, people frequently turn to the immediate “fixes” such as alcohol, poor food choices, sedentary activities which increase the oxidative load on the body… leading to more stress….more fixes…….the path of addiction. The insidious part, people rarely see this cycle, until they the body has been weakened by an illness.

Some of the more common oxidative stressors, that we can control include:

  • Alcohol
  • Smoking
  • UV
  • Certain medications
  • certain food choices
  • lack of exercise/the wrong exercise/
  • chemical exposure
  • pollutants

This is a very general list. Oxidative stress is not simple and straight forward, and of course will affect different people based on their own body’s ability to neutralize.

Consider alcohol: According to the National Institute of Alcohol Abuse & Alcoholism & National Survey on Drug Use and Health 52.7% of the population fall in the range of moderate drinking+.

A recently released study (Society for the study of Addiction) Finally has labelled alcohol as a “cause” of cancer, not just a “link”. The myth of drinking “a glass of wine a day for health” has been proven to be incorrect. Alcohol and cancer is finally accepted as fact. The meta analysis was carried out in New Zealand and published in the Journal of Addiction. Alcohol-induced oxidative stress, happens with a single drink, and sobriety is no indicator of damage.

However, we are not helpless, there are a number of ways we can lower our overall, cumulative oxidative stress load.

Health & wellness programs need to reach far beyond the preaching of eating healthy and exercising. Helping each individual person identify oxidative stressors in their life is the missing link, even in those who have the very best intentions following the healthiest of lifestyles….

Creating a positive, motivating workplace environment is of course a part of employee engagement. However, the ability of an employee to “engage” is within that individual person.

Employee engagement = Corporate Culture + Employee culture (aka cell health)

 

Shira Litwack, Corporate Program Designer
Shira Litwack: BSc Psychology & Chemistry, medical fitness professional, Cancer Exercise Specialist , holistic nutritionist, medical exercise specialist

Shira Litwack calls herself the “CHE – Chief Health Enthusiast” of Best in Corporate Health. Shira has assembled over  30 health and fitness professionals to bring you unique corporate wellness programs designed around your employees. No more one size fits none corporate health programs, no long guilt lists of shoulds and should nots – fun, engaging programs where “installation” is an integral part of all programs. The health coaches cover a wide range of specialties from nutrition, exercise, balancing lifestyle, family harmony, addiction recovery, disease prevention and recovery…..contact us to plan your corporate wellness solutions

     Webinars         Speaking         Retreats              Health Coaching

Remember, BICH processes include partners at no extra charge and are measurable!

Shira has been interviewed on: City TV, CTV, National Public Radio, Sirius XM Dr. Rehab Dr. Jonathan Whiteson & The Sports Medicine Show, Living Cancer Free, Web Talk Radio, Voice America, Obesity Control Center, Investment Executive.

Employee wellness Best In Corporate HealthArticles Featured In: FORCE (Facing Our Risk of Cancer Empowered) Willow, Cancer Exercise Training Institute, Medical Fitness Network, 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, Cancer Exercise Training Institute, Urban Poling for Breast Cancer, ROW – Recovery on Water for Breast Cancer

Cost of Smoking Employees Micah Berman

Cost of Smoking Employees A Quantitative Study by Micah Berman

Costs of smokingThe cost of smoking – very few actually crunch the numbers so Micah Berman has done it for you. You will say – time to implement an quit smoking program.

A June 2013 study by our guest Professor Micah Berman of Ohio State U reveals the costs of employees who smoke is far greater than estimated by the CDC years ago. The average cost burden of a smoker to the employer is approaching $6,000/year greater than a never smoked employee. Professor Berman’s data is crucial to companies considering implementing a smoking cessation program. Professor Berman will be delving into the data with us, and discussing the legalities & intricacies of encouraging smoking cessation programs, or choosing to not hire employees that smoke.

Beginning this summer, Micah Berman is joining the faculty of Ohio State University as an assistant professor with a joint appointment in the College of Public Health and Moritz College of Law. Prior to joining Ohio State, Micah taught law school at New England Law | Boston, where he founded the Center for Public Health and Tobacco Policy. The Center provides legal and policy support to state and local public health programs in New York State and Vermont. Previously, Micah established and directed the Tobacco Public Policy Center at Capital University Law School, which worked with Ohio’s tobacco control program. In addition to working with state and local governments, Micah has served as a senior advisor to the FDA’s Center for Tobacco Products and as a member of the NIH Director’s Council of Public Representatives. Micah received a J.D. with distinction from Stanford Law School and a B.A. in Public Policy from Brandeis University

cost of smoking Micah BermanBottom line:
Companies Pay Almost $6,000 Extra Per Year for Each Employee Who Smokes

Ouch
SO I know this could start a brawl – but it does beg the question – why would companies hire smokers? – yes it is an addiction – but it is still a voluntary behavior. Businesses are increasingly adopting smoking related policies, everyone of us knows the challenge of meeting budgets….so I think we can all understand why this is such an important study with profound impact.

Best In Corporate Health….quit smoking part of our corporate wellness programs. Let us look after employee wellness!