Apparently Honda has not gotten the message that we have an obesity epidemic, and that too much sitting is one of the major contributors to poor health in industrialized countries. This week, Honda introduced the Uni-Cub, an electric personal mobility device. While products like this can be a wonderful boon for people with disabilities, it’s very disturbing that the market for the Uni-Cub seems to be primarily the able-bodied – those of us who really need to be doing less sitting, not more. The design of the device is even reminiscent of the animated movie “WALL-E”, where humans have been in space so long they are unable to walk and are ferried around in robotic chairs – and everyone is severely obese as a result.

I’m a huge fan of the concept of “SPA” – Spontaneous Physical Activity. SPA is any movement you get during your day that is not formal exercise, including fidgeting, pacing, and walking to your co-worker’s office or cube. Studies have shown that, depending on body size, people can burn an extra 500-700 calories a day just from increasing SPA. This could equate to losing several pounds a month, without changing anything else in your lifestyle, which makes it a great “easy win”.

Apart from the calorie-burning benefits of SPA, getting up and moving throughout your day is also important to lower your risk for chronic disease. Research has clearly established that too much sitting – even in people who get regular exercise – is an independent contributor to chronic disease risk. In Harvard’s large, longitudinal Nurses’ Health Study, every additional 2 hours of sitting at work was associated with a 5% increase in risk for obesity and a 7% increase in risk for diabetes (Hu et al., JAMA. 2003;289:1785-1791). Similarly, in a British study, sitting at work >3 hr/d was associated with a significant decrease in “good” HDL-cholesterol and a significant increase in risk of pre-diabetes in men (Pinto Pereira et al. PLoS ONE 2012; 7: e31132).

In striking contrast to Honda’s latest offering to help us sit more at work, a few years ago Dr. James Levine at the Mayo Clinic started promoting the “treadmill desk”. One of the leading researchers on the benefits of SPA, Dr. Levine points out that the human body is meant to move, and to spend most of the day moving. Our modern environment, where almost everything involves being sedentary, is totally mismatched to our genes and biology. The treadmill desk is one solution for people who have desk jobs to avoid the inevitable health problems that come from too much sitting.

If you don’t want to go that far, it’s easy to incorporate other ways to increase SPA throughout your day. I don’t have a treadmill desk, but I do have a standing workstation so that when I’m at my computer working, I am standing rather than sitting. I also make a conscious effort to stand up and pace whenever I am on a phone call. Every 30 minutes, if I’ve been sitting continuously, I try to at least stand up briefly and stretch. And of course wearing a pedometer and striving to get 10,000 steps a day is a good way to ensure that you are not spending too much time sitting.

While I celebrate the development of convenient, affordable personal mobility devices for individuals who are truly mobility impaired, if you are blessed with healthy legs I hope you will stand up (pun intended!) and “just say no” to devices like the Uni-Cub.

Dr. Jennifer Lovejoy is Vice President of Clinical Development & Support at Alere Wellbeing and past president of the Obesity Society. Dr. Lovejoy’s clinical research program has been funded by grants from the National Institutes of Health, the American Diabetes Association, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and NASA. Read other blog posts by Jennifer Lovejoy.

Sandi Kaplan, MS, RD, Associate Director, Clinical Development & Support

Spring is my favorite season for a lot of reasons. Each morning, I look out into the garden and yet another bush is blooming. Purple yesterday, red, today, maybe yellow tomorrow. It’s delightful! I also love the longer days, hanging out at Little League and Major League baseball games, and making sidewalk chalk designs.

But my biggest reason for loving spring is the vegetables that are in season at this time of year. By May, I feel done with winter squash, parsnips and rutabagas. I am so ready for asparagus, artichokes and salad greens. Out with the stews and soups, and in with the blanching, steaming and grilling.

If you have a challenging time getting enough vegetables into your diet, this is the perfect time of year to increase your veggie intake. Spring vegetables are so flavorful that you don’t need to work hard to make them delicious. Preparation is quick and easy and before you know it, you’ll be getting your five or more veggie servings a day.

Here are some practical ideas to get you started:

• Consider getting a weekly or bimonthly organic veggie delivery. Most people are much more likely to eat vegetables when they are delivered to their home – along with yummy recipes.
• Use a couple of hours on a Sunday to prepare salad fixings for the week. We wash salad greens (buying prewashed greens is a great option too), steam asparagus, chop carrots, and slice cucumbers. It’s much easier to throw together a salad when you wa lk in the door if everything is ready to go.
• Never underestimate the yumminess of a sugar snap pea. These make a great addition to salads and are a big school lunch favorite in our house too. They’re wonderful in stir fries as well.
• A bed of just wilted spinach makes any dish more gourmet. I buy prewashed baby spinach leaves and steam them for just a few minutes. Add a little lemon juice and olive oil and voila!
• Make a visit to the Farmer’s Market an opportunity for inspiration. Chat to farmers about their spring produce and get their favorite ways to eat their heirloom green beans, or succulent artichokes.
• Don’t forget spring herbs – garnish any dish with fresh parsley, and put fresh mint on top of a yummy fruit salad. Herbs add nutrition, color and flavor.
• Radishes are another Spring favorite. I like them sliced raw in salads but they are also delicious roasted and tossed with a little soy sauce. People who don’t like radishes will be amazed at how good they taste when roasted.
• Chard is another leafy green that cooks in a snap. I like to sauté it with some garlic cloves and olive oil. Then toss it with some chickpeas for a light and nutritious side dish.
• Beets are a spring staple in our house. We steam the beets, then peel them and slice them for salads. While the beets are steaming, we sauté the beet greens in a little olive oil and eat them warm or cold.
• Avocado is a great spring veggie to use as a spread or a salad garnish.

We’d love to hear your Spring veggie ideas. Have a wonderful spring!

Sandi is a dietitian with an extensive experience with teaching and educational program development, both at an undergraduate and graduate level and currently instructs nutrition and psychology students at Bastyr University. Sandi is an accomplished speaker and has presented on a wide variety of topics for professional and community organizations. She is also a talented writer and produces articles and newsletters for a range of publications. Read more of Sandi Kaplan's blog posts.

Learn more about effective nutrition for weight loss in our upcoming webinar, Deconstructing DASH: How Your Workforce Would Benefit from America's #1 Rated Diet, presented by Dr. Robert F. Kushner. Register for May 15 or May 22.

Learn more about our Weight Talk® personal coaching program, designed to achieve measurable, sustainable weight loss.

Marie Gahler, Senior Manager, Weight and Nutrition Education Services

Snacking has become a favorite American pastime! We munch in front of the TV and while searching the web. We grab something to go and eat in our cars as we zoom from work or school to yoga practice or basketball. And let’s not forget those late night ice cream cravings!

So, given our current snacking habits it is no surprise that a recent article in the New York Times indicated Kellogg, the company famous for its cereal, is interested in expanding their share of the snack market and hopes to add new snack options soon. They are currently working on a deal to purchase Pringles and the snack marketing experts that come with it. While I can’t blame Kellogg for wanting to grow their business, I find myself asking: Do we really need more snack products?

With the still growing number of overweight and obese children, adolescents, and adults in this country, we need to examine the role of snacking and our health. Whatever happened to just eating three square meals a day? Back a few decades ago, eating between meals was an exception, not a daily practice. People actually sat down and ate a breakfast that kept them full until noon rolled around. They then ate a good lunch and stayed satisfied until dinner time. As we all know the obesity rate was much lower back then too and families actually ate meals together!

Recent research published in the Journal of Nutrition found that, unlike meals, snacks don’t lead to a feeling of fullness. More concerning is that people did not eat less at the next meal when they had snacked. Thus, overall, those who snacked took in more calories than those who didn’t. Not surprisingly, other studies have found that snacking is associated with greater obesity.

My personal experience is that the habit of eating between meals or skipping meals and snacking instead, leads to a higher calorie intake than when I take the time to eat breakfast, lunch, and dinner. I find if I eat healthy meals I truly am not hungry in between and while snack foods may sound or look good, I can resist them. I wish Kellogg would stick to breakfast cereal which promotes a sit-down eating experience and stay out of the snack market.

Marie Gahler has more the 25 years experience in treating obesity and weight related health behaviors and continues to be inspired by the efforts and success of those who strive to improve their health and weight. She currently manages the Accomplish Bariatric Nutrition Services program and develops curriculum for Weight Talk®. Read more of Marie Gahler's blog posts.

Erin Thompson Curlett, Senior Content & Social Media Marketing Manager

We're happy to announce that on May 15 and May 22, Alere Wellbeing will host the complimentary live webinar, Deconstructing DASH: How Your Workforce Would Benefit from America's #1 Rated Diet. Obesity expert, Dr. Robert F. Kushner, Clinical Director of the Northwestern Comprehensive Center on Obesity, will provide an overview of DASH, compare it with other top-rated diets, and offer insight into the evidence behind its design. He will also discuss the keys to sustainable weight loss and best practices for employers selecting a worksite weight loss plan.

Webinar Description

With so many diets on the market to choose from, how do you choose the diet that is best for your employees and will deliver substantial, sustainable results that will improve their health and help lower your healthcare costs?

In January, U.S. News & World Report released its list of Best Diets for 2012. For the second year in a row, the government-endorsed Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) Diet, came in first.

As a human resource professional, you know you would be hard pressed to find an adult at your organization who doesn't want to lose weight, improve their health, and increase energy. It's likely many of your employees have tried to lose weight on a diet, and after many failed attempts are at an impasse. It's time to find a sustainable solution.

Join us for our latest Clear Insights webinar , Deconstructing DASH: How Your Workforce Would Benefit from America's #1 Rated Diet, presented by Robert F. Kushner, MD, Clinical Director of the Northwestern Comprehensive Center on Obesity and one of the 22 expert panelists who rated the Best Diets for 2012. Dr. Kushner will provide an overview of DASH, compare it to other top-ranked diets, and offer insights into the evidence behind their design. Dr. Kushner will also discuss the keys to sustainable weight loss and best practices for employers to choose an effective worksite weight loss plan.

Dr. Robert Kushner

Dr. Kushner’s approach to sustainable weight loss includes improving diet, increasing physical activity, and engaging in personalized behavior change, as well as pharmacotherapy and bariatric surgery when appropriate. Dr. Kushner formerly served as president of The Obesity Society (TOS), the American Society for Parenteral and Enteral Nutrition (ASPEN), and the American Board of Physician Nutrition Specialists (ABPNS). He is currently the first president of the new American Board of Obes

ity Medicine (ABOM) and a board member of the Obesity Action Coalition (OAC). He is on the editorial board for Obesity and the Journal of the American Dietetic Association.

Visit Clear Insights to register today.

Visit www.alerewellbeing.com to learn about Alere Wellbeing’s Weight Talk®, an evidence-based personal coaching program built on the DASH Diet and designed to achieve measurable, sustainable weight loss.

Jennifer Lovejoy, PhD, Vice President, Clinical Development & Support

Employers are increasingly realizing the benefits of covering bariatric surgery for eligible employees through their health plans. Two new clinical trials, which have confirmed the pronounced benefits of bariatric surgery in improving metabolic control in patients with Type 2 diabetes, will likely provide increasing rationale for doing so, as the overall cost effectiveness is clear in spite of the high surgical costs.

The association between obesity and Type 2 diabetes is well known. Over 80% of individuals diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes (formerly called “adult onset diabetes”) are overweight or obese. Obesity causes insulin resistance, a condition where the hormone insulin is ineffective at moving sugar from the bloodstream into the cells. In genetically susceptible individuals, insulin resistance combined with too little insulin secretion leads to diabetes. Obesity also increases whole-body inflammation, which is a primary cause of many of the complications of diabetes, including cardiovascular disease, nerve damage and kidney disease.

Many studies have shown that weight loss is very beneficial for people with Type 2 diabetes. Weight loss of as little as 5-10% through lifestyle modification improves control of blood sugar and reduces other risk factors in people with Type 2 diabetes. One of the largest studies to look at behavioral weight loss in Type 2 diabetes is the LookAHEAD trial. In this study (which is still on-going), participants who received the intensive lifestyle intervention maintained a 6% weight loss at 4 years and had significant reductions in their hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) levels (a marker of blood sugar control). They also had sustained reductions in blood pressure and triglycerides.

Bariatric surgery produces much more dramatic weight loss and, therefore, much greater benefits in terms of diabetes control. The two new studies demonstrating this effect were both published in the New England Journal of Medicine and report very similar findings. In an Italian study, 75% - 95% of bariatric surgery patients had their diabetes go into complete remission off medication compared with none who received conventional medical therapy. Average starting BMI was 45 kg/m2 and this dropped to 29 kg/m2 2 years post-surgery. The U.S. study, STAMPEDE, was interesting in that it looked at patients with a lower range of starting BMI: 27-43 kg/m2. U.S. guidelines recommend bariatric surgery for BMI of 35 and above with obesity-related comorbidities, but a third of patients enrolled in STAMPEDE had BMI<35. Whether because of the lower BMIs or because it was shorter than the Italian study, STAMPEDE found that only 42% of patients had normalized their HbA1c levels by 1 year post surgery. Weight losses were ~55-65 pounds. Type of surgery did not make a significant difference in the STAMPEDE trial, but in the Italian study, patients who had the biliopancreatic-diversion procedure saw better results than those who had gastric bypass.

Previous studies have found long-term benefits of bariatric surgery on diabetes. One of the largest and longest studies of bariatric surgery is the Swedish Obesity Study (SOS). To date, SOS has 20-year follow up date on over 2000 patients who had bariatric surgery. Study results show that 70% of patients experienced total remission of diabetes after two years of follow-up, and 30% are still in remission 15 years after bariatric surgery.

It is also important to note that patients and payors should protect their investment in bariatric surgery by supporting patients with a behavioral program post-surgery to help maintain the weight lost. Patients who are not good candidates for surgery should consider engaging in a behavioral weight loss program, too - as studies like LookAHEAD and others show, you don’t need to have huge weight losses to achieve big benefits in diabetes.

Dr. Jennifer Lovejoy is Vice President of Clinical Development & Support at Alere Wellbeing and past president of the Obesity Society. Dr. Lovejoy’s clinical research program has been funded by grants from the National Institutes of Health, the American Diabetes Association, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and NASA. Read other blog posts by Jennifer Lovejoy.

Visit www.alerewellbeing.com to learn about Alere Wellbeing’s Accomplish® Program, a nutritional and lifestyle counseling program exclusively for weight loss surgery patients.

Erin Thompson Curlett, Senior Content & Social Media Marketing Manager

I hate to cook. So many moving pieces, so many ways to get burned, sliced, splattered with burning oil – you know. It can be stressful.

Baking’s a different story – baking I’ve got down pat. My mom’s chocolate chip cookie recipe is to die for. My cupcakes, cinnamon rolls, scones, and banana bread are pretty scrumptious, too. Chicken enchiladas? Lasagna? No problem.

Can you see a pattern? I’m really good at making really unhealthy fare. As a newlywed who is still slowly adjusting to what it means to feed two people (What? You don’t want cold cereal and fruit for dinner…again?), I also have to adjust to the fact that my tastes and my husband’s tastes only seem to intersect on – you guessed it – unhealthy fare. We both love pizza! And pad thai! And burgers! Oh my.

But when it comes to eating healthfully together, I’m at a loss. We both want to add more fruits and vegetables to our diet, but we are on completely different pages. He likes broccoli, asparagus, and green beans. I like tomatoes, peppers, and eggplant. I’d be happy to whip up the veggie-rich soups and salads that fed me through my single days – but he’d be asking where’s the meat?

Last week, it finally dawned on me. The pattern of my culinary success was not merely defined by unhealthy fare; it was also defined by my preference to mix ingredients together in one go – and then wait for the heat to do all the magic.

It was time to unveil our never-before-used slow-cooker.

When I went to the market I piled as much produce as I could fit into the grocery cart – some produce I love, some my husband loves, some I figured we both needed to try (like kale. Everyone's talking about kale). I also made sure to pick up some lean protein – mostly chicken, but also a little bit of ground beef (next time we’ll try ground turkey).

The first recipe I tried was spicy chicken burritos, which basically required putting sliced chicken breast into the pot with chicken broth, sweet bell peppers, zucchini, tomatoes, and spicy taco sauce. I modified the recipe a bit, replacing chicken bouillon granules with low-sodium chicken broth and the green taco sauce with a spicy Tex-Mex inspired sauce my husband and I had in our cupboard. I added sliced squash and a few sprigs of kale (because everyone’s talking about kale). We added the mixture and a little bit of salsa (and yes, just a little bit of cheese) to our tortillas. The result? Delicious and filling chicken burritos! We felt pretty good about the meal, but because the Tex-Mex sauce was a bit high in sugar and sodium, next time I think I’ll swap that out for lime juice, cilantro leaves, and diced jalapenos. I'll also try replacing the instant rice with less starchy brown rice.

I won’t bore you with the details of the other (fairly experimental) recipes I’ve tried, but I will fill you in on what I’ve learned in the last week:

• Slow-cookers are easy to use and don’t require a lot of ingredients: Chop up your veggies, slice your lean protein, grab your broth and spices, and voila! Set it and forget it. Aside from the obvious benefit of dumping ingredients into a pot and walking away for 8 hours, the best part of the slow-cooker is that you don’t need a lot of fancy ingredients or a complex recipe to make a delicious meal.
• Slow-cookers make tender meat: My mother-in-law also makes tender meat, but she has a few years on me in culinary craft. While I learn the art of meat tenderizing, our slow-cooker can provide back-up. Slow-cooker, you just earned your right to a permanent spot on the countertop.
• Preparing veggie-loaded meals made me more mindful of veggies: I found that as I chopped vegetables for the slow-cooker, the very act of chopping – being mindful of the colors, the smells, the textures– made me think more positively of the vegetables. When I returned to the fridge later for a snack, the carrots and peppers I had chopped that morning seemed like a good mid-afternoon snack, too.
• Slow-cookers allow you to cook with new veggies without committing to eating them: My husband wrinkled his nose at the kale and the peppers that I added to our burrito mixture, but the chicken that he ate sat in their veggie juices all day long. Likewise, the veggies sat in the chicken juices all day long - so to him, it was a win-win. The veggies he ate didn't taste quite as terrible as he had envisioned. Plus, he could obtain (some of) the nutritional value of the veggies even if he picked them out (and gave them to me - yum!).
• Using a food processor reduced my stress and increased my enjoyment of cooking: Knowing that all I had to do was chop and prepare allowed me to take my time and not worry about planning everything out just so – one component of home cooking that usually makes me feel anxious.
• My daily increase of fruits and veggies had immediate health effects: Even after one week I feel like I have more energy, am drinking less coffee in the morning, and am sleeping better at night. I even think my pasty winter complexion has improved!

Do I think I’ll give up learning to cook in favor of slow-cooker meals? No - that would be a disappointment to my loved ones (I'm not even talking about my husband - almost every dear  friend gifted us with books of healthy recipes and/or cookware for our wedding). But I do think that experimenting with time-saving, stress-reducing food processors is allowing me to slowly immerse myself into the joyful world of mindful food preparation – and is helping to build my confidence for future culinary endeavors.

Reed Dunn, Senior Recruitment Marketing Manager

When you are a runner or becoming a runner, brand loyalty is something you just have to let go of.

That wasn’t an easy concept for me, as I thought I knew which shoes were best for me. Those shoes resulted in a black toenail, partly because they were a size too small. I didn’t realize I was running for several months without enough toe box room, because, well, I didn’t really understand the importance of the toe box. Or arch support. Or flexibility.

I just knew what I thought felt right. I was wrong.

Many runners with much more experience had told me I should go to a running store and get evaluated. I thought this seemed a bit excessive, since I already had made my new shoe purchase after completing an in-store self evaluation by jogging on the treadmill and jumping up and down in the shoes.

All I had done was bump up a size in the same exact shoe that had caused my first black toenail. But I thought everything was perfect. The shoes felt great, I ran my first half marathon in them, and I was certain I had found my forever shoe. Then the outer edge of my left foot started feeling sharp pains when I ran distances beyond a 5K.

Knowing my latest running goal involves completing five half marathons in 2012 (maybe I shouldn’t be committing to this in a published forum), I knew it was beyond time to take the advice of those more-skilled runners and get myself into a store that would complete a full evaluation of my stride, arch and other elements that help determine the shoes that would be best for me.

I had held off because I was certain this was going to result in a $250 shoe purchase that may or may not resolve my ongoing issues. Or result in new issues.

When I walked in and greeted the sales team at the store, they immediately got me started on the evaluation. For those of you who haven’t done this, it’s very high tech and would have been worth the $250 I was expecting to pay for the “perfect” shoes for me.

Upon completing the 10-minute evaluation – I wiggled my feet, ran barefoot for a few minutes on a treadmill and rocked back and forth and side to side on cushioned pads – the in-store evaluator informed me of my high arches and consulted with another sales member to get a few pairs of shoes for me to try. He showed me on a touch-screen monitor (that always makes it seem fancy and official) where my weak spots were and where I was pounding the ground hardest.

Price was not discussed. I was certain that was a sure sign I’d be dipping deep into my bank account.

After trying on half a dozen pairs, including four different brands, I had a better understanding of how the shoes should feel. I had a better feel for what would be an appropriate toe box for my foot, and I felt confident I was going to end up with a pair of shoes that would treat me better than my previous purchases.

As I walked to the counter, I was surprised to learn this shoe purchase was not going to be $250. Evaluation included, I was walking away with a pair of shoes that were just less than $80. I did almost double my purchase price by adding a pair of custom insoles that, weeks later, I can say have dramatically helped my running.

As I prepare for my first half marathon of 2012 this weekend in New Orleans, I’m feeling confident I’m running in the right shoes. I’m not sure they are my forever brand or style, but they’re working out much better for me than any previous pair I’ve tried. Thanks to the in-store evaluation, I’m even thinking much more about how I’m running and am more aware of how my feet feel with each step.

Reed Dunn is senior recruitment marketing manager at Alere Wellbeing. He discovered a passion for running, completed his first half marathon in December 2011 in Las Vegas, and now is working toward new running goals. Read more of his running tips.

Janice Milliman, Quit Coach, Service Delivery

February is Heart Health Month, and last week my 11-year-old daughter participated in the Jump Rope for Heart event at her elementary school, which raises money for the American Heart Association. She says, “We’re raising money for kids whose hearts aren’t working well and the money is used to help them get better and have a more normal life.”

My daughter has always enjoyed jump roping and every year she looks forward to Jump Rope For Heart because it’s a great deal of fun. On event day, kids who wish to participate fill the gym and parent volunteers arrive to support the P.E. teachers. The first few minutes are spent reflecting on the recipients of the fundraising dollars, information about heart disease, and the importance of taking good care of one’s heart.

When the jump roping begins, as my volunteering husband says, the gym becomes “crazy loud.” Kids choose between several types of jump rope games such as Single Rope, Double Dutch, or Chinese Wheel. My daughter’s favorite is the old standard single rope jumping. The Jump Rope for Heart website has instructions on jump rope skills and tricks. 

People are more likely to exercise if the activity is also fun. My daughter says the P.E. teachers encourages 60 minutes of exercise per day. Maybe the next time she is outside jumping rope I ought to join in the fun and get exercise at the same time. I need to keep my heart healthy too.

How are you keeping your heart healthy?

Reed Dunn, Senior Recruitment Marketing Manager

I’m a guy, so it should be no surprise I don’t stop for directions.

Driving around lost is a little different from running around lost, as I learned this week. While I should be at least slightly ashamed to admit this, I got lost while out on my mid-week run.

My plan was to set out from my apartment and clock a nice five- or six-mile run. When I was about two miles into one of my standard routes, I decided to veer off course and check out a different trail. This was a bad idea, especially in the dark.

Within the next mile, I realized I had no idea where I was – aside from inside the city limits of Seattle. I could see the downtown skyline and other important landmarks. While I wasn’t completely lost from all civilization, I realized there was no way I would be landing back at my starting point without adding somewhat significant mileage to my original plan. There was also now way I’d be turning around, which, you know, would have made too much sense. So I carried on from there.

That normally would be an OK thing, except I had no water or refueling snacks with me. I had my iPod, keys to my apartment, and three whole dollars. I realized that money could be used to take a bus back to near my home base, but there was no way I would know what bus to take. I don’t know a thing about the routes in that neighborhood, whichever one I was in at that moment. I was constantly staring at my Garmin watch to see how far I was going. My pace was all over the place. My heart rate was abnormal.

But I ran on, guiding myself back toward the downtown skyline and further away from the much closer University of Washington campus where I was located at this point. I tried to convince myself this was a good accident, especially considering I feel at least one short run behind schedule in planning for the upcoming Rock ’n’ Roll Half Marathon in New Orleans.

I passed my six-mile point. Then seven. Then eight. I was nearing my neighborhood by this time, but I hadn’t had any water or electrolytes to refuel my body. I still felt OK, though I knew that wouldn’t translate well later in the evening. My legs, inevitably, would cramp from lack of hydration.

It’s not like I was going to be completely left to the wolves. I did have three bucks, should I really need to barter for a bottle of water.

I got back to my apartment after wandering around new-to-me parts of the city having clocked right at nine miles. It was almost like I’d planned it, except I hadn’t at all.

Getting the extra mileage into my total was a good thing, but I learned my lesson. Not having a solid route planned on other days when I wasn’t so hydrated – I had taken in five large glasses of water throughout the day leading up to this run – would have ended much more terribly.

Having a plan allows me to know my pace, know where I’m going, stay hydrated, and perhaps most important, know the quickest path home.

Reed Dunn is senior recruitment marketing manager at Alere Wellbeing. He discovered a passion for running, completed his first half marathon in December 2011 in Las Vegas, and now is working toward new running goals.

Marie Gahler, Senior Manager, Weight and Nutrition Education Services

February is American Heart Health Month, a time to realize how prevalent and deadly heart disease is and learn whether our behaviors have us on the track to health or on the track to disease. On Valentine’s Day, we often think about our hearts in an abstract, romantic way, but it’s also a great time to take stock in our lifestyle and think about how our daily decisions affect our physical heart – the most important muscle in our body.

Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death in the United States; one in every three deaths is from heart disease and stroke, equal to 2,200 deaths per day. Though you may not have heart disease, many of us know someone who does or did and realize how devastating a disease it can be. For me it was my father who had high blood pressure and arthrosclerosis and died in his mid 60’s – an age that is not that far off for some of us.

As is the case with many health conditions, our genes do make a difference in our likelihood for developing heart disease. But there’s good news - there are many lifestyle behaviors that contribute significantly to the health of our heart and circulatory system. These behaviors mean that we actually have a significant amount of control over our heart health. For the first time, the American Heart Association has defined what it means to have ideal cardiovascular health, identifying seven health and behavior factors that impact health and quality of life. We know that even simple, small changes can make a big difference in living a better life.

Known as “Life’s Simple 7,” these steps can help add years to your life:

1. Don’t smoke
2. Maintain a healthy weight
3. Engage in regular physical activity
4. Eat a healthy diet
5. Manage blood pressure
6. Take charge of cholesterol
7. Keep blood sugar, or glucose, at healthy levels

As an Alere Wellbeing employee, it certainly feels good to know our programs address each of these 7 areas. Every day we talk with people who are working towards meeting these goals and we are able to help them. In September 2011 the Department of Health and Human Services launched the Million HeartsTM initiative that aims to prevent 1 million heart attacks and strokes in the U.S. over the next five years. They intend to do this by:

• Empowering Americans to make healthy choices such as avoiding tobacco use and reducing the amount of sodium and trans fat they eat. These changes will reduce the number of people who need medical treatment for high blood pressure or cholesterol—and ultimately prevent heart attacks and strokes.
• Improving care for people who do need treatment by encouraging a focus on the "ABCS"—Aspirin for people at risk, Blood pressure control, Cholesterol management, and Smoking cessation—four steps to address the major risk factors for cardiovascular disease and help to prevent heart attacks and strokes.

This second point – treatment - is something we as Alere employees can help with too. We commonly encourage our participants to follow all doctors’ orders. Many individuals with high blood pressure and high cholesterol don’t follow doctor’s orders and fail to take their medication or monitor their blood pressure. At our suggestion we can aid in making sure they understand the importance of getting regular medical treatment and taking all prescribed medication.

For more information on Alere Wellbeing's products and services,  visit www.alerewellbeing.com/our-services