Sit-Stand Workstations Improving Overall Health in Workplace Revolution

by Laura

Possibly the one single transformation that is to blame for the poor present physical condition of many Americans is the computer revolution in the 1990s that made the computer the focus of most office jobs, and many other types of workplaces as well. Suddenly workers were doing nothing but SITTING in front of monitors most of the day. And rather than rush to exercise once off work, they went home and sat in front of the television for another four hours.

Since the 1950s, there has been a 60 percent reduction of workers in occupations that require moderate to intense activity. Some statistics equate sitting 9 or more hours a days with smoking a pack and a half of cigarettes, in terms of heart health.

In an attempt to reverse some of that, a few companies are experimenting with standing work stations. They even have stand-up meetings.

A Minneapolis company that starting a program to stand more during the work day found that as a side benefit, it reduced upper back and neck pain by over half.

There are a few different models of sit-stand workstations and sit-stand programs offered in the marketplace, but I would like to pass on some info about the Ergotron, since that is the one I have the most data about. Ergotron offers an online Sitting-Time Calculator at sittingtime.juststand.org. It calculates how much you are sitting but also offers tips on how to reduce cardiovascular risks associated with sitting too much.

Anyway, it's a movement that is spreading slowly, either through hardware – adaptive stand-sit work stations – or through software – such as the Hotseat phone app that schedules activity breaks during your work day. (Get more information about the latter at http://gethotseatapp.com/)

Wellness Tools Expand to Include Smartphone Apps, And More

by Laura

I wholeheartedly support managing one's own health and so that is why I am pleased to read that there are more and more tools being made available to keep tabs on it, or to prompt an exercise break.

Here are a few of the newer apps available out there.

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1- “HOTSEAT” – tested by AMERICAN HEART ASSOCIATION

The AHA is offering this app, called Hotseat, in a test with its employees. It is a program to help couch potatoes get moving and get their heart rates up. The AHA launched the test of the app in June (it ran through July), and achieved a remarkable 33 percent participation rate among employees. Hotseat has only one goal, to get employees up and out of their chairs to take a short activity break during the workday. Users select activities from a list in the app's library of options, to program into their own plan; it will even sync with the employee's work calendar. Comes with a timer that ticks off the seconds as the user does his activity. Go directly to the site at http://gethotseatapp.com/ for more info and details.

2- REDBRICK HEALTH “JOURNEYS”.

RedBrick Health decided to listen to enrollee feedback and added a wellness and disease-management app to its Journeys program. Engagement rates have quintupled.

Participants can select from a list of goals such as lose weight, get active, eat healthier, etc. They answer a few questions, and receive a step-by-step, bite-sized pieces of the program through their phone app.

One of the keys to this program's success is that participants are kept accountable by noting progress via email or social networks.

The app is customizable so that if you want reminders about dieting goals, you can receive an alert at say, 11 am, before your lunch break, or even on the weekend before one goes grocery shopping.

Achieving one's health goal earns you some congrats or rewards, but users generally create a new goal for themselves to keep motivated.

3- OPTUM RX.

Participants in the Optum program use texting to help adhere to their medications schedule. Users set up reminders to take their meds, or just an alarm for specific times each day.

It saves money for the insurer and protects the enrollees by cutting down on emergency room admissions. One source claims that as much as 70 percent of ER admissions are due to “poor medication adherence” or in other words, forgetting to take one's meds.

4- PROVANT.

Provant offers wellness apps for its enrollees, where they sign up on the mobile site to do such tasks as log their food and exercise, check nutrition info, share biometric screening data with their healthcare providers, or related functions.

Provant teams up with companies to urge employees to get moving, so there's an app for an employee exercise challenge. Large companies have as many as 15 teams competing in a step challenge.

5- 100 PLUS.

An interactive app allows the user to create mini fitness challenges based on your location.

6- THRYVE.

An online meal-tracking platform. You take a picture of your meal and the app visually shows you how much you ate by increasing or decreasing the virtual plate size. It asks the user how they felt about the food they ate, with the aim of detecting possible food sensitivities.

7- BUTTERFLYE.

Tracks your heart rate while underwater. I assume this is for divers?

8- PERFORMTEK.

Detects biometric data through an earbud interface.

9- SWEATBEAT.

Detects heart rate variability with the goal of stress management.

10- LARKLIFE.

Tracks steps, meals and sleep, so this seems like a good overall wellness management tool.

11- FITBUG, FITBIT, or ACTIVELINK.

All of these apps are for tracking physical activity, for us couch potatoes who would like to get more active.

12- FLORNCE.

Provides prescription reminders and determines non-adherence patterns. This mobile app is offered by mHealthCoach.

13- PILLJOGGER.

This app also offers prescription reminders, plus it gives coupons and rebates to help users with medication costs. The coupons and rebates are a reward for users to adhere to their medications schedule.

14- CAREPLANNERS.

This one is available to the general public as well as to enrollees of a specific insurance carrier. The website allows family members to coordinate and track all care for a family member. Personal service provided by a nurse will, in addition, help manage those health care services.

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Kudos to the American Heart Association for planning to make their app available to the general public and setting a standard for other apps providers. I do hope that more apps will be made available either through your own health insurance carrier or to the general consumer. Perhaps an inquiry to your own insurer will prompt them to include a phone app in their wellness program, if they do not already have one.