(800) 786-1730 [email protected]
Corporate Wellness and Obesity Prevention

Corporate Wellness and Obesity Prevention

Thanks to the tireless effort of our amazing partners, our influence is expanding! Our evidence-base from schools, communities and head starts, has led to a new sector, corporate health and wellness.

How do kids fit into corporate wellness and obesity prevention? To begin, employees are also parents. Many parents wish to instill healthy living habits in their children. Working parents are more likely short on time and not sure of the best approach. Secondly, children are dependents on company health care policies. So, their wellbeing has an impact on the bottom line. As childhood obesity continues to affect youth, corporations recognize the potential impact they can make by investing in obesity prevention for children in schools and communities.

Sponsoring turnkey, evidence-based school and community-wide programs and events, as part of a year round initiative where children and families spend their time, are steps in the right direction, not to mention great opportunities for public relations. Coupling this outreach with consistent messaging in the workplace provides further opportunity for family engagement.

In terms of corporate wellness and obesity prevention, this topic is important because children are the future pool of employees. Empowering children with skills to live healthy and giving them tools to build a foundation of healthy habits makes for a promising future workforce. A workforce that is more productive, vibrant and robust is much better than one filled with missed days, working while sick, and other issues that contribute to enormous, and growing, health care costs.

 

disadvantages-of-working-parents_f395168221598d89

Extending the impact of corporate wellness programs into the home and community may help achieve the two-fold goal of healthier, happier employees and dependents and the impetus to turn the tide on the obesity trajectory.

We are so appreciative of the tireless efforts of health educators ‘in the field’ – from teachers, county Extension Agents, nutritionists, nurses, etc. As parents take initiative and more resources are available through corporate channels, it follows that the positive impact could be exponential! Click here to continue reading about this issue and to see how promoting family and community engagement is an investment toward a healthier bottom line and happier, more productive employees and families.

Celebrate Girls Fitness with #GirlsAre!

Celebrate Girls Fitness with #GirlsAre!

In May, we are so excited to celebrate National Physical Fitness and Sports Month! When it comes to being active, we think that everyone should participate no matter what age, gender or race. That’s why we are so excited to partner with #GirlsAre Campaign to promote girls fitness. Thanks to the Alliance for a Healthier Generation, Clinton Health Matters Initiative, and No Ceilings: The Full Participation Project of the Clinton Foundation for sponsoring this campaign. This three-week long campaign is designed to shine the spotlight on female fitness.

franklinhuddle

Why do we focus on girls and women? Statistics show that girls are less physically active as boys. By the time they reach high school, females are twice as likely to drop out of sports teams than their male counterparts. Here at OWG, we want everyone to be physically fit and are so excited about promoting girls fitness! Exercise helps build muscle, improve cardiovascular health, and releases feel-good chemicals called endorphins that make us happier. To show our support for the #GirlsAre Campaign we have rounded up our favorite blog posts that feature strong, physically fit girls. You can check them out here.

Dominique Dawes – Listen in as Dominique Dawes, a former Olympic Gymnast, share her healthy lifestyle tips.

Ruthie Bolton – One of the most accomplished athletes in the world shares her tips for keeping kids healthy. Ruthie Bolton is a 2-time Olympic Gold Medalist, a USA Basketball Female of the Year, the Sports Illustrated Best Woman Athlete by home state, and one of only 4 players to be named to the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame Class of 2011. 

Dr. Sarah Messiah (Part 1 and Part 2) – Not only is Dr. Messiah a colleague in childhood obesity prevention, she is also a former Olympic athlete!

Stephanie Smith – An elite sprinter sits down with Peri Stolic for an interview about her sport and training for the Olympics.

‘Tis the Season to be Healthy

As always, we love sharing great content from our partners at TogetherCounts

If you’re like most people, this time of year doesn’t exactly inspire extra workouts and light meals. And if you’re like most people, when January rolls around you’re motivated to get moving again in an effort to trim that bit of holiday “cheer” you accumulated during the season.

As members of the Healthy Weight Commitment Foundation (HWCF), we encourage busy families to check out their Together Counts™ program. A robust resource for teachers and parents, over the holiday season you’ll find free motivation to get ahead of the splurge with simple tips and tweaks to your usual routine.

The OrganWise Guys are all about friends, family and fun, but we always encourage you to make the healthiest choices possible. Even at the holidays where parties and celebrations are everywhere, it is still possible to enjoy yourself and even indulge, but within reason. We recently shared these 10 ways to beat the holiday temptations

Instead of overindulging now—with high hopes of rightsizing your portions, and your waistband in the new year—try to end 2015 with a healthy start and a few new habits. These three simple tips can help!

  • Starting today and for the next 30-45 days, make one or two small changes daily and stick with it! Take the stairs. Eat breakfast. Notice your portion size at every meal. All of these simple tweaks can improve overall wellness and after 21 days…new routines become habits.
  • Kids are on their best behavior this month, out to demonstrate who’s been naughty or nice…and they may be watching you too! Make your healthy, active lifestyle a family priority by involving the kids and modeling those healthy habits.
  •  Thinking bigger than yourself? Enter to win a healthy playground makeover on behalf of your local school. There’s no better way to say Happy Holidays than to bring hope for healthier kids to your community with a $30,000 grant. To learn more visit TogetherCounts.com. #HealthyCommunities

 

 

Thanksgiving Theme Never Gets Old

We always love sharing great resources from our partner, TogetherCounts!

Family walking on path holding hands

If you groaned when you saw pumpkins and Christmas trees lining the store shelves back in August, when you were busy buying school supplies, you’re not alone. Fall is a busy time and the pressure to decorate and celebrate weighs on us when we’re trying to simply get the family into a weeknight routine. But as the weather cools, welcoming the Thanksgiving holiday and all it’s traditions gets easier. Right about now we all start feeling grateful in anticipation of the holiday season.

As members of the Healthy Weight Commitment Foundation (HWCF), we encourage busy families to check out the Together Counts™ program. Planning to visit farms and take advantage of the local fall bounty? Check out Farming Spotlight—new agriculture resources for schools and families that highlight the connection of farms to food.

We at The OrganWise Guys, love this time of year where the primary focus is on family, friends, food, and fun! We encourage time spent together cooking (healthy foods, of course!) and finding time to be active together. Think about taking a family stroll after your holiday meals … great for exercise and quality together time!

Also, give back to your community this fall with a family activity centering on feeling grateful. Opportunities abound for volunteering this time of year and can remind children of the reason for the season. An easy way to give back is to enter to win a Healthy Playground Makeover for your child’s school. Two grand prize winning schools receive a $30,000 grant plus a new playground! Get your kids involved to start a campaign for their own school or one with greater need. Anyone can enter on behalf of a pre-K through elementary school. Getting 60 minutes of active play time each day is recommended for all children, but did you know there are many benefits to outdoor play and in particular for children ages 3-5? Pre-K schools and Head Starts can apply for one of 11 grants—up to $20,000—to improve wellness at school. Share news about Smart from the Start grants with an early childhood education teacher in your community. A simple post on Facebook can make all the difference and this time of year, a busy teacher in need of new resources will be grateful you did!

Safe Routes to School

Safe Routes to School - walking and biking

It seems in today’s world, the idea of letting kids walk or bicycle to school would be one of the past due to safety concerns. But thankfully, we recently discovered the Safe Routes to School National Partnership, whose mission is to promote safe walking or bicycling to schools and by creating livable and sustainable communities.

According to their site, the Safe Routes to School National Partnership collaborates with organizations, government agencies and professional groups working to set goals, share best practices, leverage infrastructure and program funding and advance policy change to help agencies that implement Safe Routes to School programs.

We can’t think of a better way to get kids active before and after school than being able to walk or bicycle there along a safe route, so we joined as a partner affiliate and are strong advocates for healthy and safe kids so we created a fun, OrganWise-themed coloring sheet in support of the Safe Routes to School mission!

Download your Safe Routes to School coloring sheet below:

Coloring Sheet Button

 

 

 

 

 

So what are you waiting for? Become a partner affiliate and promote safe communities for kids!