physical activity

We are experiencing a perfect storm of global factors that are truncating the lives of some of our best minds because their bodies are failing. Ironically we are victims of our own technological advancements.

Never in history has child mortality been so low. As a result we are opening up the reality of adulthood to so many more humans.

Never in history have there been so many readily accessible foods to eat. Many of which are loaded with empty, artery-clogging calories.

Never in history has physical activity been so unnecessary. Do we really need an electric motor to open a door for us or shuttle us up the stairs to our gym facility? 

The World’s leaders do not think so and they are finally speaking out, this week the United Nations opened in New York.

Non-communicable diseases (NCDs), which are estimated to cause 63 percent of all deaths worldwide, were the focus of a two-day UN high-level General Assembly meeting which resulted in a declaration calling for a multi-pronged campaign by governments, industry and civil society to prevent and control NCDs. “Non-communicable diseases are a threat to development. NCDs hit the poor and vulnerable particularly hard, and drive them deeper into poverty,” said UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.

NCD’s attack developed and developing nations with equal devastation. Diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, cancers and chronic respiratory diseases cause 37 million deaths out of the 57 million deaths that occur around the world each year. A succession of heads of state and other national leaders stated their commitments to doing more to address risk factors for non-communicable diseases, with a special emphasis being placed on physical activity.

This is great news. First of all physical activity also means sports, games, gardening and walking. This is fun and easy stuff that can be done with family or against your most formidable enemy. Movement can be easily recognized, is hard to hide and can be the most social of endeavors. Wouldn’t it be great if Feetbook was as popular as Facebook?

And what else could be better than bossing around your Boss and with the straightest of expressions say; “I am only doing this for your own good. Get off your butt and move.”

You will eventually get a heartfelt “thanks”. You may have to be ready to give an ice pack and a couple of Advils.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends 150 minutes a week of moderate-intensity aerobic activity and “muscle-strengthening activities on 2 or more days a week that work all major muscle groups” for adult Americans.

But, a story published by NPR in April of 2011 counters that even that amount of due diligence may not be nearly enough to undo the hours of sitting Americans do each day.  Epidemiologist Steven Blair of the University of South Carolina points out that even if an individual is meeting their exercise recommendations; they are still sleeping, and conceivably spending ten or so hours immobile at their desks, commuting, or in front of their televisions.

Blair points out that we are just beginning to understand the risks of sitting and immobility, according to a 2008 study.  The study claims that “men who reported more than 23 hours a week of sedentary activity had a 64 percent greater risk of dying from heart disease than those who reported less than 11 hours a week of sedentary activity. And many of these men routinely exercised.

Dr. Toni Yancey, author of Instant Recess; Building a Fit Nation 10 Minutes at a Time  was also cited in the NPR article as saying, “We just aren't really structured to be sitting for such long periods of time, and when we do that, our body just kind of goes into shutdown."

Wellness companies are now getting hip to the benefits of ergonomic science in the workplace for more than the original concerns of repetitive stress syndrome and injury prevention and starting to incorporate concepts such as “sit to stand” work stations in order to promote opportunities to move at least every hour or so, and hopefully more often than that.

Comprehensive corporate wellness programs are informed by the latest science.  Providing your employees with the best programs ever keeps your competitive edge strong and healthy. 

We all know exercise is a crucial component of any company’s corporate wellness and fitness culture.  But how exactly does physical activity affect your company’s health risk management investment?

According to a statement published by the American Heart Association: “Regular physical activity using large muscle groups, such as walking, running, or swimming, produces cardiovascular adaptations that increase exercise capacity, endurance, and skeletal muscle strength.  Habitual physical activity also prevents the development of coronary artery disease and reduces symptoms in patients with established cardiovascular disease.” The article goes on to say that this most likely applies to the reduction of the risk for diabetes, depression, obesity, and breast and colon cancer. 

However, long term meaningful health and fitness may require more than a daily visit to the gym.  Human bodies are designed for and require movement.  Our muscles are made to plant and harvest, hunt, play with children, and run from predators.  Today, we sit on our way to work, ride elevators to our offices, and often, our primary social and professional networkings take place via texts and emails where the only parts of our bodies that move may be our thumbs.

A July 2010 New York Times article cites a study that surveyed a group of well educated, upper class men.  Most of these men had a steady workout routine.  They also typically spent about 23 hours a week watching television, driving, or in otherwise sedentary activities. The study found that these men had a 64 percent greater chance of succumbing to heart disease than men who spent less than eleven sedentary hours a week.  

So how do your hardworking employees counter long hours at their desks that may actually be bad for their health?  Move. Pace during the conference calls.  Stand up and stretch while the computer reboots.  Deliver messages to coworkers in person rather than by email.  Encourage actual conversation rather than instant messaging.  Walk to the break room and pour a cup of green tea.

Regular activity throughout the day is another piece in the wellness puzzle that protects your best investment: your employee’s health.  

Do your part to lower the federal deficit. Be a part of the solution, not more of the problem.

Is this possible?

Absolutely, according to Dr. Jarett Berry, a Cardiologist at The University of Texas Southwest Medical Center in Dallas as published in the Tuesday, March 9, 2010 Health & Wellness Section of the Wall Street Journal.

You can be an asset and not just another liability contributing to the demise of the Federal Medicare (and most likely your home State’s Medicaid) bank.

Get moving now.