Corporate wellness programs emphasize all the things we know we should
be doing — eating right, exercising and not smoking. But why, specifically, is it in the
employer’s best interest to promote smart
eating habits among its employees?
“Productivity, absenteeism, morale, retention, recruiting — all of these things can be
linked back to corporate wellness,” says
Cheryl A. Houston, Ph.D., RD, LD, associate
professor and director of the dietetics program as well as the chairperson of the
department of human environmental sciences at Fontbonne University.
“There have been many general studies on
the benefits of wellness programs over the
last five to 10 years,” Houston says. “One of
the key findings is the improvement on
absenteeism rates. Companies with organized wellness programs — i.e. weekly supervised exercise — have reported a reduction
of 4.8 days of sick time per employee per
year. Additionally, one company realized a 68
percent improvement in days lost to disability following the implementation of a rehabilitation program for post-coronary patients.”
Smart Business asked Houston how food
fits into the overall wellness picture.
What factors tend to set off poor eating habits
among employees?
Stress is probably the No. 1 factor. Today’s
workers have a great deal of stress, not only
on the job but at home, as well. Many
employees are caring for both children and
aging parents. The insanity of our schedules
makes it difficult to be 100 percent ‘present’
while we are at work. Technology has also
created stress. Everyone expects access to
you 24-7. Work never really ‘ends’ — or at
least our minds are on work well into the
night. This is emotionally and physically
draining. As a result, people are irritable, getting headaches, suffering from mental confusion and impaired decision-making ability. All
of these factors will have many long-term
consequences on a person’s health. Good
nutrition helps buffer these negative effects.
What can a company do to reduce stress?
Examine your own corporate culture. Do
you tell everyone to take a lunch break, but then your managers don’t? Do you give the
impression that your top people ‘are at it’ 24-7-365? If so, then you’re not modeling healthy
behavior. Another thing you can do is ask
your employees how you can help them. For
example, maybe you’ve been thinking of
offering a smoking cessation program — but
only 10 percent of your workers smoke. On
the other hand, 80 percent are overweight
and would really like resources to help them
lose weight. Identify the interest and the risk
to tailor your programs appropriately.
How can companies create a healthier environment overall?
Studies show that there are a number of
things you can do. Some suggestions are:
- Offer some type of health education to
increase employees’ awareness of health
and wellness. - Provide a supportive social and physical
environment. In his book ‘Mindless Eating:
Why We Eat More Than We Think,’ Brian
Wansink, Ph.D., explains how dramatically
our environment influences what we eat,
how much we eat and how quickly we eat. - Provide healthy options. Make sure you
have wholesome food on hand at meetings and in the cafeteria, where it should taste
good and be priced reasonably. - Integrate health into the corporate culture as an element to be valued. Link wellness to employee assistance programs. For
example, if someone is dealing with divorce-related stress, help him or her maintain
healthy eating habits during the process. - Conduct health risk appraisals, which
give you tangible information to work with so
you can provide the right types of targeted
information focused to your employees.
What can an employer do for a person with
special nutrition-related needs?
Let’s consider a person living with diabetes. A fluctuating schedule totally disrupts
someone who is trying to manage a chronic
condition. These employees need some
degree of autonomy — the ability to start
and stop work on their own — so they can
check their blood sugar level when they
need to, etc. And they should have a clean,
private place to attend to their health needs
— not be expected to do so in the company
bathroom. The same goes for nursing mothers. Why would they want to risk contaminating their baby’s milk in a public restroom?
How should these efforts be driven through
the organization?
Human resources is often thought of first,
and that’s a good place to start. But it’s important to know that a wellness program does
not have to be expensive; there are many free
or low-cost programs available in the community. Universities are always looking for
partnership opportunities where students
can be brought in to speak, conduct brown-bag luncheons, do screenings, etc., all under
supervision while they learn. Students in programs, such as dietetics, occupational and
physical therapy, nursing and other related
areas, all need these types of real-life experiences. You can also go to Web sites for organizations such as the American Dietetics
Association and the American Heart
Association, which will help you identify free
programs and speakers.
CHERYL A. HOUSTON, Ph.D., RD, LD, is associate professor and director of the dietetics program as well as the chairperson of the