School’s out, but America gets an F

Weight change for the week: +2.2 pounds; back to starting weight

No high marks for the U.S. – or Missouri, for that matter – in the fight against obesity.Despite ongoing discussions about obesity and continuing research into the health issue, adult obesity rates got worse in 23 states and didn’t decrease in any state in the past year.

Trim the Fat: National Workplace Wellness Week wraps up Saturday

Weight change this week*: +0.4 Total: -10.6

More than one-third of the U.S. working-age population is at risk for chronic illnesses as a result of physical inactivity and obesity. The American Heart Association’s National Workplace Wellness Week, April 5–11, encourages physical activity where many adults spend most of their waking hours – work.

Employers stand to benefit from having healthier workers. According to the AHA, obesity-related health issues cost $117 billion a year, and three chronic conditions – asthma, diabetes and hypertension – result in 164 million lost U.S. workdays to the tune of $30 million in employer costs.

Trim The Fat: Healthy Fast Food?

Maria’s weight change: -0.6 of a pound this week; total -11 pounds

One of the trickiest things about trying to eat healthy and trim down is dining out – and when quick dining is the desire, it can be even more difficult.

A recent visit to health.com, however, offered a bit of help for on-the-go diners.

Trim the Fat: Branson group wins big with 931-pound loss

Maria’s weight update: -2.2 pounds; total: -10.4 pounds

For those who are trying to lose weight, watching others progress on the same journey can have one of two effects: jealousy or motivation. Because I think jealousy is an unhealthy emotion, I try always to look for the motivation and the lessons that can come from others’ successes on the journey to better health.

When I learned that a group of 44 people in Branson lost a combined 931 pounds during Hometown Radio’s Lighten Up for Life Challenge Two, which ended this month, I was intrigued.

Trim the Fat: Can a recession make us heavy?

Maria’s weight change for the week: -0.8 of a pound ; total: -10.4 pounds

With everything from a housing slowdown to layoffs to difficulties borrowing money being blamed on the nation’s economic woes, its not too surprising to me that there are some health issues that can reportedly be made worse by the financial pinch.

And while I’m not a medical or financial expert by any means, logic tells me that tight financing can foster unhealthy eating in at least a couple of ways.

Trim the Fat: Employers support healthy endeavors

Maria’s weight change for the week: -4 pounds; total: -9.6 pounds

There are lots of reasons why employers might want to take an active role in supporting employees’ endeavors to improve their health.

Perhaps the most obvious is the dollars-and-cents issue. For employers, and particularly those who pay for all or part of employees’ health insurance coverage, keeping employees healthy means keeping those costs down. Better overall employee health also means fewer days off due to sickness, and that can help the bottom line, too.

According to the American Heart Association, adult Americans spend the most waking hours at work, often in sedentary jobs, and obesity alone costs U.S. businesses $12.7 billion a year in medical expenses, and $225.8 billion in health-related productivity losses.

Trim the Fat: Temptation comes calling

There are certain truths in life.

If you want rain, wash your car.

If you want your car to stop making a funny noise, take it to a mechanic, he won’t hear a thing.

And here’s another one: If you want to be tempted by all kinds of fattening goodies, commit to starting eating more healthy foods in pursuit of weight loss.