Your Healthy Workplace
A Monthly Newsletter • September 2016
Meet fitness goals
by walking at work
Schedule your
flu shots!
T
W
alking while talking businesses can
make staff meetings less boring and
more healthy, new research suggests.
The study found that converting a single
weekly meeting to a walking meeting may raise
work-related physical activity levels of white-collar
workers by 10 minutes. A walking meeting is when
a group of employees and their manager literally
walk around while discussing company matters.
Just one walking meeting can help meet the
targeted goals for physical activity set by the American Heart Association, which recommends adults
get about 30 minutes of moderate-intensity physical activity each weekday.
The possible health benefits of regular walking
meetings include reducing cholesterol and lowering blood pressure. These sessions can also have
psychological benefits, such as increased job satisfaction, and benefits to the organization, such as
heightened job engagement.
Walking meetings can pose challenges when
it comes to taking notes or reviewing paperwork. Researchers recommend a sit-and-conclude time after the 30-minute walk to go over
paperwork or other things that couldn't be addressed while walking.
Taking notes during a walking meeting is also
Physicians Quality Care
possible by briefly stopping to write on a small notepad or by
using a voice-recording device.
For an effective walking meeting, researchers recommend
keeping the group small and planning it in advance so attendees can come prepared with good walking shoes.
– U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Need help starting a physical activity program at your workplace? This is one of our many onsite services. Contact Jennifer
McCarter at [email protected] or 731.984.8400.
2075 Pleasant Plains Ext. l Jackson, TN 38305
Office: 731.984.8400 l Fax: 731.984.8305
Milan: 15463 S. First St. 38358 l 731.686.8688
he best way to protect
yourself from the flu is to get
your annual flu vaccination.
It’s always hard to predict
when flu season will begin and
what flu season will be like, but
most seasonal activity is
between October and May.
Employees should get
vaccinated against the flu
before October to ensure that
they are protected before the
season begins.
It takes about two weeks
after vaccination for antibodies
to develop in the body and
provide protection against the
virus.
Your employees can come to
our clinic to receive their flu
shots, or we’ll come to your
work place at no extra charge.
Contact Jennifer McCarter at
731.984.8400 or
[email protected].
More on flu, next page ...
Office Hours: 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. Monday to Friday
Clinic Hours: 7 a.m. – 11 p.m. 7 days a week
On-site Services: Available 24/7 by arrangement
[email protected] l www.occmedjackson.com
Flu shot important for type 2 diabetes patients
T
he seasonal flu vaccine may offer people with
type 2 diabetes some protection against dying
prematurely, a new study suggests.
The flu shot also appeared to protect those
with type 2 diabetes from hospitalizations for
stroke, as well as heart and breathing problems.
During a seven-year study, researchers found
that flu vaccination was associated with a 19 percent reduction in flu-season hospital admissions
for heart attack in people with type 2 diabetes.
Hospital admissions for stroke were 30 percent
lower for those who got a flu vaccination.
Admissions were also down 22 percent
for heart failure, and 15 percent for
pneumonia or influenza in people
with type 2 diabetes who got the flu
shot.
The death rate among those
who received a flu shot was 24 percent lower than in those who
weren’t vaccinated.
Physicians Quality Care
P.O. Box 12197
Jackson, TN 38308
Address Service Requested
Physicians Quality Care OCCMed provides occupational medicine services to West Tennessee’s industrial base • occmedjackson.com
We speak OSHA!
To help you comply with OSHA, we offer …
w On-site CAOHC-
certified audiometry
10-person mobile unit
w DOT, non-DOT and
hair follicle drug
screening
w Breath- and bloodalcohol testing
w DOT, pre-employment
and wellness
physicals
w NIOSH-approved
pulmonary function
testing
w Health fairs
w Physical therapy
w Respirator-fit testing
and OSHA respirator
medical evaluations
w Heavy-metal testing
w Strength & agility
testing
w Industrial hygiene:
noise sampling, air
sampling, dust
sampling, etc.
w Nerve conduction
studies
w X-rays
w EKGs
Americans gaining weight
A
mericans are getting heavier and heavier – 15 pounds heavier on average since the early 1990s, according to new statistics from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention.
According to the report, the average weight of men in
the United States rose from 181 pounds to 196 pounds between 1988-1994 and 2011-2014. Their average height remained the same at about 5 feet, 9 inches.
The average woman, meanwhile, expanded from 152
pounds to 169 pounds while her height remained steady at
just under 5 feet, 4 inches.
Even 11-year-old kids aren’t immune from this weight
plague. Girls are more than seven pounds heavier, even though
their height is the same. Boys gained an inch in height, but also
packed on an additional 13.5 pounds compared to two decades ago.