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Contents

How to Use the Healthy Eating and Active Living Toolkit / 3
Promoting Healthy Eating and Active Living / 4
American Cancer Society Nutrition and Physical Activity Guidelines / 7
Email Inserts / 11
Newsletter Inserts / 14
Personal Testimonial: “I Did It!” / 27
Social Media Messages / 28
Messages for Use Year-round / 30
Additional Resources / 32

How to Use the Healthy Eating and Active Living Toolkit

The American Cancer Society Healthy Eating and Active Living Toolkit has ideas and resources to help your employees improve their eating habits and physical activity to help them get to and stay at a healthy weight and reduce their risk of cancer. With a variety of communication tactics, such as emails, newsletter articles, social media messages, and quick tips, this kit includes information and resources designed for any size business or organization.

As part of the American Cancer Society’s mission to lead the fight for a world without cancer, we are pleased to be working with your company to help your employees reduce their risk of developing the disease. By educating your employees about the steps they can take to stay well by eating right and being physically active, and by creating healthier workplace environments that make it easier for employees to make healthier choices, we can help save more lives from cancer.

Please be sure that the American Cancer Society is cited as your source of information when offering the enclosed information to employees. All the content in this document is updated and accurate. Changing the text or content of this toolkit could also change the meaning or accuracy of certain medical content, and is strongly discouraged. Together, we are stronger than cancer.

The toolkit is currently available in English only, but the American Cancer Society does offer information about cancer, including prevention, early detection, treatment, and managing side effects, in several languages. The link to Cancer Information in Other Languages is now on the Content Subscription Service page in the Other Resources and Activities section.

Visit cancer.org/healthy to learn more about how your employees can make everyday lifestyle changes that help reduce their risk of cancer.

Promoting Healthy Eating and Active Living

It’s a fact: About 1 out of 5 cancers diagnosed each year in the United States is related to body fatness, physical inactivity, excess alcohol consumption, and/or poor nutrition. Many of us spend most of our waking hours at work, which means the workplace can have a big impact on what your employees eat and how active they are throughout the day. You can help your employees reduce their cancer risk just by asking some simple, but important questions and taking some simple steps.

·  How many meals do your employees eat at work? One? Two plus a snack? Where do those meals and snacks come from?

·  Are there healthy foods and drinks for employees in the cafeteria or in the vending machines, or do they have to buy something from a nearby fast-food restaurant or convenience store?

·  Is there a refrigerator where employees can store healthy meals and snacks they bring in themselves?

·  If there’s a meeting scheduled during breakfast or lunch and your company is providing the meal, do you have a policy that healthy choices should be included in the menu?

As an employer, you have a tremendous opportunity to create a healthy workplace that encourages and supports your employees in making good food and beverage choices. Providing on-site food service venues – whether a full-service cafeteria or a vending area – with choices that are lower in calories, saturated fat, added sugar, and sodium is a good start.

Encouraging and supporting your employees to eat more vegetables, fruits, and whole grains, and to cut back on less nutritious foods like red and processed meat, fried foods, and sugary drinks will help them feel better, and give them the energy they need to get through their busy days. Healthier employees also mean a healthier bottom line for you.

In addition to promoting healthy eating, your organization can also help the American Cancer Society get the word out to your employees about the importance of adopting a more active lifestyle and staying at a healthy weight. Regular, moderate physical activity (such as a brisk, 30-minute walk) has many health benefits, such as:

·  Directly reducing the risk of getting colon and breast cancer, as well as other types of cancer indirectly, by helping with weight control

·  Reducing the risk of heart disease

·  Reducing the risk of developing diabetes

·  Reducing the risk of developing high blood pressure and helping reduce blood pressure in people who already have high blood pressure

·  Reducing feelings of stress, depression, and anxiety, and appearing to improve mood

·  Helping control weight

·  Helping build and maintain healthy bones, muscles, and joints

·  Helping older adults become stronger and better able to move around without falling

·  Promoting worker productivity

Your company can use several strategies to encourage and support your employees in living a more physically active lifestyle:

·  Give incentives to encourage employees to be physically active. Rewards could include fitness-related items, such as company-branded activity trackers or gym bags.

·  Encourage individual and team participation in ongoing community-based activities (e.g., recreation or sports leagues).

·  Create a section on your company intranet to highlight employee success stories in being physically active and achieving weight-loss goals.

·  Provide free or subsidized fitness activities on-site or pay for or subsidize costs of off-site fitness club membership.

·  Sponsor company fitness challenges.

·  Support lunchtime walking/running clubs or company sports teams.

·  Offer a health risk appraisal to all employees and follow up with sedentary employees.

·  Keep the stairwells clean and safe, and post reminders to encourage employees to use them.

·  Provide parking locations for bicycles at company sites.

·  Provide showers in case employees want to work out before work or during the day.

·  Allow flexible work schedules so employees can fit exercise into their days.

·  Encourage employees to stand up and walk around at work when possible.

·  Give discounts on health insurance premiums and/or reduce co-payments and deductibles if an employee participates in a specified health promotion or disease prevention program.

·  Consider providing stand-up and/or treadmill desks to reduce employees’ time spent sitting.

·  Encourage walking meetings, and lead by example by holding some of your own.

Healthy employees live longer, feel better, are more content and productive, use fewer sick days, and help keep health care costs down. Your organization recognizes that healthy lifestyles are as much a part of workplace time as they are home and leisure time, and you can create a workplace environment that supports healthy lifestyles. By encouraging your employees to adopt a more active lifestyle and follow a healthy diet, your company can take the first step toward creating a healthy workplace.

We challenge you to do something great for yourself and the health of your employees! With the information and resources in this Healthy Eating and Active Living Toolkit, you can help your employees lower their risk for cancer, heart disease, and diabetes. Together with the American Cancer Society, your company can help save lives from cancer by improving your employees’ health and well-being, while benefiting your organization’s bottom line at the same time.

American Cancer Society Nutrition and Physical Activity Guidelines

American Cancer Society guidelines on nutrition and physical activity include:

·  Get to and stay at a healthy weight throughout life.

·  Be physically active.

·  Eat a healthy diet with an emphasis on whole grains, fruits, and vegetables.

·  If you drink alcohol, limit yourself to no more than 1 drink per day if you are a woman or 2 per day if you are a man.

Adults: Get at least 150 minutes of moderate activity, or 75 minutes of vigorous activity each week (or a combination of these), preferably spread throughout the week.

Children and teens: Get at least 1 hour of moderate or vigorous activity each day, with vigorous activity at least 3 days each week.

Everyone: Limit sedentary behaviors such as sitting, lying down, watching TV, and other forms of screen-based entertainment.

Examples of moderate and vigorous physical activities:

Moderate Activities / Vigorous Activities
Exercise and Leisure / Walking, dancing, leisurely, bicycling, ice-skating or roller-skating, horseback riding, canoeing, yoga / Jogging or running, fast bicycling, circuit weight training, aerobic dance, martial arts, jumping rope, swimming
Sports / Volleyball, golf, softball, baseball, badminton, doubles tennis, downhill skiing / Soccer, field hockey or ice hockey, lacrosse, singles tennis, racquetball, basketball, football, cross-country skiing
Home Activities / Mowing the lawn, general garden maintenance, scrubbing the floor, sweeping an outdoor area, cleaning out the garage, washing windows, walking and putting household items away, carrying out heavy bags of trash or recyclables (e.g., glass, newspapers, and plastics) putting groceries away, walking and carrying especially large or heavy items / Digging, carrying, and hauling, masonry, carpentry
Occupational Activity / Walking and lifting as part of the job (custodial work, farming, auto or machine repair) / Heavy manual labor (forestry, construction, firefighting)

If you are a man older than 45 or a woman 55 or older and you have not been regularly active or you have any health concerns, talk with a health care provider before you start an exercise program. Regardless of your age, if you have 2 or more of the following, talk to a health care provider before starting a new plan for physical activity:

·  High blood pressure

·  High cholesterol

·  Diabetes

·  Use of tobacco products

·  A family history of early onset heart disease (a parent, brother, or sister with heart disease before age 65 for female relatives, or before age 55 for male relatives)

Staying Motivated

Set specific goals that include a variety of activities

Remember, doing a little something is better than doing nothing. Rather than having general goals like “getting in shape” or “exercising more,” choose specific goals, such as walking 30 minutes on Tuesdays and Thursdays, or doing stretching exercises 5 minutes each morning. The more variety you have, the more likely you’ll be to stick with it. A well-rounded exercise program that includes aerobic exercise, strength training using weights, and flexibility exercises – done regularly in small increments – is key, according to the American College of Sports Medicine.

Work fitness into your lifestyle

Begin to see exercise as an all-day, everyday opportunity. For example, use the stairs instead of the elevator, walk during lunch, bike to work, or get up from your desk for a quick 10-minute walk a few times during the day. Stand up during conference calls and webinars. Combine fitness with your family chores and activities, such as raking leaves or gardening.

Find the type of exercise that works for you

People have different preferences for the type of exercise they enjoy. Some people love to walk outdoors, while others prefer to take a group fitness class, or use a workout video at home. Don’t be afraid to try out different options to find the one or two things that you enjoy and will keep you motivated. At the end of the day, the best exercise program is the one you enjoy enough to stick with.

Try visualization techniques to help keep you motivated

Imagine yourself being in shape and how it would feel. See yourself looking fit. Rather than focusing on feeling out of shape, focus on what you can do with the energy you’ll have after your workout.

Build a support system of family, friends, coworkers, and neighbors to help encourage you when your motivation is low

Find a buddy who shares similar fitness interests to exercise with. Plan on a 20-minute walk each day after lunch and hold each other to it.

Expect setbacks, and prepare for obstacles

Time limits, illness, or bad weather will get in the way. Work around them, and move on. If you go off your program, you can always get back on track. Some exercise is always better than none. And remember, use your support system to get you back on the path to your fitness goal.

Try changing your eating and exercise habits

Writing down and tracking your food intake and physical activity is a great way to better understand your habits and whether you need to change them.

Reward yourself

Believe it or not, rewarding yourself can help you keep your goals to eat better and be more active! Treating yourself for the milestones you achieve – from eating more fruits and vegetables to not succumbing to the vending machine at work to finally fitting into those jeans you’ve wanted to wear – can help keep you encouraged, motivated, and on the right track. Try to choose non-food rewards, like treating yourself to a massage or buying those new shoes you’ve had your eye on. You don’t want your reward to undermine the progress you’ve made.

Email Inserts

Quick tips on nutrition and physical activity to include in any email or company newsletter:

Stay at a healthy weight throughout your life. Adopt a physically active lifestyle. Eat a healthy diet with lots of vegetables, fruits, and whole-grain foods. Limit your alcohol intake. Doing these things can help reduce your risk of certain cancers, as well as provide other important health benefits. Visit the American Cancer Society® website at cancer.org/healthy to find out more about the steps you can take to stay well. (Source: American Cancer Society)

Get at least 150 minutes of moderate activity or 75 minutes of vigorous activity each week (or a combination of these), preferably spread throughout the week. Limit the time you spend sitting, lying down, and watching TV or other screen-based entertainment. Visit the American Cancer Society® website at cancer.org/healthy for more information on fitting more activity into your daily routine. (Source: American Cancer Society)

Make exercise work for you. Visit cancer.org/healthy to learn how to choose activities that are right for you, how to exercise for weight control, and how to stay motivated. (Source: American Cancer Society®)