Preventing Chronic Diseases: The Importance of Health Programs Within the Workplace

It's much more difficult to maintain your healthy lifestyle sitting behind a desk or in front of a computer for eight or more hours. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention suggests ways to improve the well-being of the nation's employees.

Due to the prevalence of chronic diseases in the United States, such as obesity, depression, hypertension, and cardiovascular issues, it's important for employers and businesses to promote health in the workplace. Offering wellness programs to employees is a good first step in doing so.

A workplace wellness program is defined as a health promotion activity or organization-wide policy designed to support healthy behavior and improve health outcomes while at work, according to the CDC. This includes health education and coaching, weight management programs, medical screenings, fitness programs, healthy food options at the office, walk and talk meetings, and other prudent initiatives.

The CDC finds workplace health to be of utmost importance because chronic diseases accounted for over 75% of the United States' medical costs that amassed a total of $2.2 trillion in 2009. Additionally, the Commonwealth Fund released a report earlier this week that found the United States has the most expensive health care system with the least effective care out of eleven developed countries that were analyzed.

And although it's important to maintain a healthy lifestyle in the workplace, it's even more important to instill such values in our nation's children. Michelle Obama created the Let's Move! program that aims to solve the childhood obesity problem that has engulfed America. Over the past 30 years, the childhood obesity rate has tripled, incurring billions of dollars against the health care system (about 12.5 million children are obese). Even more alarming, 34.9% of U.S. adults are obese. Together, these obesity rates contributed to $147 billion in medical costs in 2010.

But there is good news. Chronic diseases are entirely preventable if one pursues a healthy lifestyle that includes a nutritious diet, plentiful exercise, and a diligent work effort in order to maintain good mental health.

You can read more about workplace wellness programs on the CDC website.