The cost of heart disease and how employers can take action

Among men and women, heart disease is the number one killer. Heart disease kills more than all types of cancer combined and with the numbers increasing, employers need to start stepping up on the war against heart disease to help their employee take notice of their dietary habits and sedentary life's. Since the foods in the vending machines are consumed by the employees, how about taking a look at offering healthier food choices. What about implementing an exercise program in the office to get your employees moving?

Heart disease encompasses a number of different health concerns, most notably coronary artery disease which is the leading cause of heart attacks. Employers must start focusing on the different things that lead to heart attacks and several other heart conditions. Here are some of the things you need to look into and hopefully start changing in the lives on your employees:

• High blood pressure


• Obesity


• Sedentary lifestyles (inactive lives)


• Unhealthy eating habits


• High cholesterol


• Alcohol and tobacco abuse


• Diabetes

The costs of heart disease are continuing to grow higher and higher. Coronary heart disease alone reaches costs of over $151.6 billion and this cost is only expected to keep getting higher as the years go on and more and more people are not caring for their cardiovascular health. Employees that take time off work to recover from heart attacks and other heath conditions, this leaves the employer dealing with reduced productivity, sick leave expenses, and hiring temporary employees to help with the workload. All of the costs that are tied to heart disease are incredibly expensive to the employer's pocket, especially with your health insurance premiums that will continue to climb up higher and higher.

So what can you do to help your employees learn how to care for their bodies and their cardiovascular health properly? Here are some great programs and tips to try out:
1. Change out your vending machines to include healthier eating choices. Stop selling candy bars and soda and bring in some bottled water, fruit juice, granola bars, and nuts. By encouraging healthier eating in the office, you can do your part to help your employees remain healthier.
2. Include exercise time during work hours. While you cannot force your employees to exercise during the work hours, you can certainly encourage them to exercise by providing some exercise equipment that they need. You can also offer yoga classes and spinning courses during work hours or in the morning or after work to get your employees to exercise. By offering them gym passes, you can also encourage them to workout.
3. Bring in a medical team to come and do health evaluations. This is a great way to show your employees where their blood pressure really is at and offer them advice on how they can start changing their heart heath with better eating and exercise habits.
4. Create a wellness program that emphasizes the importance of exercise and proper eating habits. A wellness program can be used to provide your employees with compensation or other benefits if they are able to work hard to lose weight and to make a commitment to a healthier life. Include a smoking cessation benefit program as well for your employees that are finally getting rid of tobacco for good.
5. If you serve lunches at work be sure to include plenty of healthier meals like salad, chicken, and whole wheat sandwiches. By teaching and helping the employees to start eating healthier, it will increase their life expectancy and it will provide them with more energy and alertness so they can be more productive in the office.