The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) have created a free informational program called LEAN Works to help employers implement workplace obesity prevention programs. The program aids employers in planning, building and promoting a program and assessing the results after implementation.
Such programs are as important as ever, today, as obesity continues to be a growing problem. The CDC reports that the annual cost of obesity, in terms of healthcare costs, was estimated in 2008 to be as high as $147 billion in the U.S. And a study by Trust for America’s Health reported that employee obesity could increase medical costs by $66 billion by 2030. Indirect costs, including loss of productivity resulting from obesity, could amount to as much as $580 billion annually.
Some companies have already successfully implemented financial incentive programs to encourage their employees to eat right, exercise, and, ultimately, lose weight. These companies recognize that lost productivity and increased health care costs resulting from employee obesity negatively affect their bottom lines. Other workplaces have gone so far as to install treadmill workstations to get employees in sedentary jobs moving.
Earlier this year the American Medical Association (AMA) declared obesity a disease. The hope is that this declaration will begin to reduce the stigma associated with obesity and help patients get better care. Approximately 90 million Americans are considered obese, today, and that number is expected to grow.
Voluntary workplace programs to help prevent and address obesity among employees could positively impact not only a business’s bottom line, but the health and happiness of its employees.
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