Welcome to the first edition of “To Your Health!” This newsletter will be released once per month. If you would like to contribute any articles, success stories, healthy recipes or the like, please email your contributions to kfaires@wscc.edu.
Paula Johnson has done an excellent job as Wellness Chair for the past several years, establishing several yearly events such as the Selby Blood Screenings, numerous brown bag lunches/presentations, and the first ever Wellness Fair at WSCC last spring. She asked that I take over as chair this year and I most eagerly accepted!
I’ve been meeting with the Healthy Heart Coalition at the Washington County Health Department. They are providing a lot of assistance to us this year, such as ideas for monthly themes to educate WSCC Staff about preventing and coping with various health issues.
Please mark your calendar and plan to attend our brown bag event this month.
Be Well,
Kelly Faires
Wellness Team Members
Paula Johnson
Lou Swartz
Dixie Stone
Emily Schuck
Gail Reynolds
Vicki BiddleCurt Plummer
Susan Strauss
Brown Bag Luncheon
Presenter:Lyndell Pool, RN
Diabetic Educator at Selby General Hospital
Topic: Diabetes
Location: WSCC Main Building – Cafeteria
Time: 12:00 – 1:00
Please take a break from your busy in-service activities, bring a brown bag lunch and join us to learn about diabetes issues. Feel free to bring a list of questions/concerns with you to discuss during or after the presentation.
Wellness Quote
“The concept of total wellness recognizes that our every thought, word, and behavior affects our greater health and well-being. And we, in turn, are affected not only emotionally but also physically and spiritually.”
-- Greg Anderson
Great American Smoke-Out 11/18/04: Today's the day! The American Cancer Society is encouraging all Ohio smokers to put out their cigarettes for at least one day, and perhaps for a lifetime.
Smokers who want to quit have more tools than ever to help them quit. The Ohio Tobacco Quit Line was just launched earlier this year. It puts smokers in touch with a counselor who can talk about habits, triggers, and tools such as nicotine replacement therapy, prescriptions such as Wellbutrin and Zyban, and local support programs. They work with a smoker through five calls, from setting a date to quit to follow-up.
Smokers who complete the Quit Line program are FIVE TIMES more successful than those who quit cold turkey. Please encourage those who are considering quitting to call 1-800-934-4840 for this free service. Your personal support and encouragement can also make a difference!
Walking Program 04-05
Objective: Employees will increase their physical activity, will feel more energetic, and will see improvement in their statistics from screenings done in October.
Length of Program: The program will officially begin on November 1, 2004 and will last until WSCC Employees have journeyed completely around the United States. Progress will be displayed on a large map located in the reception area. We will all contribute miles as individuals, so there is no pressure to perform at a certain level.
Also, employees may participate for the entire program, or may choose to join later in the year as we go along.
How it will work: Participants will pick up their Weekly Step Tracker Forms from the Mailroom. Each week they will deposit the completed form in the envelope marked “completed forms”. The “Alternatives to Walking” sheet provides the estimated clicks per minute for other activities.
It is not too late to start walking with us. Just pick up a form, info packet, and BEGIN!
Walking is inexpensive and can be enjoyed by people of all ages!
Walking Program Update
Employee |
11-1 to 11-6 |
11-7 to 11-13 |
TOTAL FOR WEEK |
522.9 |
603.6 |
Average per person |
23.8 |
28.7 |
# Walkers |
22 |
21 |
Congratulations to the 23 participants who have taken interest in increasing their physical activity and who have submitted a slip for one of the two weeks. You may still join us if you are interested. Some people are wearing pedometers but are missing from the list. If you’ve been busy, that’s ok. You may turn your slips in late if and we will include your miles. It is ok to estimate if you forgot to wear it a few days. Just be conservative with your estimate. Thanks!
November —Diabetes
American Diabetes Month
Diabetic Eye Disease Month
Nov 18 Great American Smoke Out
December—Healthy Holiday Meals and Nutrition
January—Healthy Weight/Weight Control
Jan 18-24 Healthy Weight Week
February—Healthy Heart
Feb 6 National Wear Red Day
American Heart Month
March—Smoking/Tobacco Cessation
March 31 Kick Butts Day
April—Exercise & Physical Activity
April 3 YMCA Healthy Kids Day
April 5-11 National Public Health Week
April 7 World Health Day
WalkAmerica
May—Stroke Awareness
National High Blood Pressure Education Month
National Stroke Awareness Month
June—Safety/Ergonomics
Fireworks Safety Month
July—Eyes, Ears, Skin
Eye Injury Prevention Month
August—Stress
No national stress awareness day in August, but it seemed appropriate for this time of year...
Back to School!
September—Cholesterol
National Cholesterol Education Month
October — Cancer Awareness
National Breast Cancer Awareness Month
Oct 15 National Mammography Day
“Proc-tober”
Diabetes |
Diabetes is a disorder in which the body cannot convert foods properly into the energy needed for daily activities. Diabetes tends to get passed on genetically but factors other than heredity are responsible as well. There are two main types of diabetes. Type I, or insulin-dependent, is the more severe for of the disease. Type II, or adult onset, is the more common form and accounts for more than 85% of all cases. Diabetes cannot be cured, but it can be controlled. Control requires carefully regulating one's diet, regular exercise, and, if necessary, insulin. |
Thanksgiving is just around the corner.
Click on the turkey for some health holiday recipes.