Tuesday, October 30, 2007

Healthy living is a free choice, the rewards are priceless

It's that time of the year again - office parties, end-of-year functions and the ultimate Christmas dinner recipes are on everyone's mind. In a time when eating has become more about entertainment and less about nutrition, do we still know how to feed our bodies the right nutrients without worrying about the costs of health food?
Nutritional therapist Heidi du Preez says although there is no perfect diet applicable to everyone, there is a simple, pleasant and cost-effective way to eat better. Du Preez, who has just co-authored a cookbook called Naturally Nutritious, says that a natural wholefood diet should comprise fresh fruits, vegetables, nuts and seeds, whole grains, legumes and filtered water. Lean organic meat, eggs and limited dairy should also be included. "Although animal products should form part of the diet, plants must comprise the foundation of your meals. Vegetables should therefore be our main source of carbohydrates. However, pasta, bread, cereal and sweets are most likely the primary sources. They are all processed and lacking the natural nutrition of wholefoods," she says.

People tend to say it's expensive to eat healthily, but it's not true. Fruit and vegetables should be bought at more regular intervals and that might give buyers the impression they are spending more. If you're looking for healthy food on a small budget, then fruits and vegetables and other whole foods are the way to go. They're actually much cheaper than processed foods. If you want to pinpoint the cost of major items on your bill, look at cheese, dairy, lunch meats/expensive cuts of meat, sweets, cereals, snacks and alcohol. The Friday night fast food dinner tradition can also be done away with, saving a family of four an average of R 200 - R 300 rand a time if they all have burgers, chips, a soft drink and desert.

In addition, eating a natural diet might mean less trips to the doctor (between R200 and R300 for those without medical aid and that's excluding medicine). "Cancer, heart disease, arthritis, diabetes, chronic fatigue syndrome and even allergies are often the result of a simple nutritional deficiency which can be corrected or controlled with healthy eating. Our diet has the distinction of being the only major determinant of health that's completely under our control," says Du Preez.

"If we are already ill we need to address the real causes of the unhealthy lifestyles that keep us slaves to the destructive emotional crutches of smoking, alcohol, unhealthy eating and other substance abuse. We need to relearn how to cope positively with stress and deal more assertively with our mental and emotional needs." Quitting these bad habits will also save money - at R30 for a cheap bottle of wine and more than R20 for a pack of cigarettes, it boils down to a lot of very expensive damage.

Du Preez says most of us are not sick enough to lie down (the horizontally ill), but suffer from one of the so called civilization diseases - we are vertically ill. "All of us might not suffer from cancer, heart disease, diabetes or arthritis but we all have at least one of the following debilitating conditions: chronic fatigue syndrome, allergies and multiple chemical sensitivities, migraines or headaches, constipation, acne, memory loss, poor concentration, hyperactivity, loss of sex drive, PMS, menopause, etc. "The vertically ill often become trapped in a cycle of dependency on their doctors to monitor and constantly adjust their medications. They derive only limited benefit from the array of antidepressants, tranquillizers, anti-inflammatory drugs and/or antibiotics all of which carry high costs. I was trapped in this cycle until I discovered the benefits of simple healthy eating," says Du Preez.

"Spirit and mind contribute more to your health than you realise, if we abuse our bodies with unhealthy and expensive eating and bad habits, we aren't happy and it shows in our health," she says. In terms of supplements Heidi says wholefood supplements, not isolated vitamins, hold the key to health. Thousands of phyto-chemicals, fibre, vitamins, minerals and enzymes found in wholefood have the greatest impact if they work together in synergy.

Heidi who consults out of her sea front office in Jeffreys Bay, charges R220 per consultation (for 1 1/2 hours) and her recipe books costs R160 and is available online at www.naturalnutrition.co.za.

Freelance writer and mother Beth Cooper has long believed in the principles of healthy eating, "What's worked for me and which can have a huge, albeit slower, impact on family health is to do a "swap" on each food item, gradually building up a majority of healthy choices in the cupboards, as opposed to making a sweeping change all at once, which is more expensive," she says.

Diabetic nurse specialist Sister Sheradin Williamson says that we should all revert back to the way we used to eat thirty or forty years ago. "The kids didn't eat junk food on such a regular basis thirty or forty years ago, for most of us it was a rare treat. We also walked to school or the beach which is now considered dangerous. Changes in society have meant many of us have more money to buy junk food and fizzy drinks and this, combined with less exercise, is having a negative impact on our health."

Sherryl Victor of the Shuga Free Shop in Port Elizabeth says that the most important factor in controlling diabetes is diet. Her shop includes a range of diabetic friendly products, but she says all health conscious people would benefit from eating this way. Her and her husband Lenn will open the Shuga Free Restaurant in mid-November and the health conscious community is delighted. A cycling group has already booked the restaurant for a function, because they now will be served healthily prepared meals, rich in all the right nutrients. People with diabetes (all meals are diabetic friendly) and other chronic illnesses will be able to eat a nutritious meal here for about R125 per head for a three-course meal.

Johnny Johnson, Chief Executive of absenteeism specialists CAM Solutions says that 7.6% of the employees in their study, which comprised a sample of more than 100 000 employees in 60 South African companies, took time off because of chronic illnesses that are most often associated with diet. These included heart disease, diabetes, cancer and hypertension. These chronic illnesses cost the economy R1.4 billion in the last year. "It makes financial sense for employers to aid their employees in following a healthy diet, to either help prevent or control these chronic illnesses," he said.

(For information on the software developed by CAM Solutions or on our Absenteeism Management program, log onto www.camsolutions.co.za or www.absolv.co.za for more information).

Tuesday, October 23, 2007

Managing Absenteeism

For all small to medium businesses, you can now manage your own absenteeism over the internet. Draw reports pertinent to your business and compare with global benchmarks or industry benchmarks. For more information, log onto www.camsolutions.co.za or www.absolv.co.za. E-mail info@camsolutions.co.za for more information.

Larger companies can purchase the software to enhance their existing payroll features and manage absenteeism.

Remember, what you don't know, you can't manage.

The CAM SOLUTIONS team!

Thursday, October 18, 2007

Women still sick more than men in SA workplace!

The focus on women in August has been further highlighted by the absenteeism rates of females in the business, the details of which were issued by CAM Solutions this week. The statistics generated by the absenteeism specialists have shown that women are taking more sick leave than their male counterparts in corporate South Africa. The sample in this study comprised over 60 South African companies, with more than 100 000 employees. The average absenteeism rate of females in this sample (calculated by dividing the number of days the employee took off by the number of days she should have been at work) was 2.65 in 2006, and for males it was 2.28. The absenteeism rate for women in 2005 was 2.61 and for males it was 2.08.

CEO of CAMS Solutions Johnny Johnson said that female absenteeism costs the economy about R 8 billion per year in direct costs. The associated indirect costs due to lost productivity in the workplace are calculated conservatively as two times the value of the direct costs.

Statistics show that the highest reason for female sick leave is influenza, which accounted for 11.55% of all sick leave taken in the female segment of the sample in the March 2006 – March 2007 cycle. The second highest reason for sick leave amongst women is acute bronchitis, which accounts for 4.82% of sick leave in this same time period. Back pain was the reason 4.72% of females took sick leave in the 2006 cycle and 4.43% of women in the workplace were absent due to gastroenteritis during this time.

Other reasons for female absenteeism include acute stress reaction (2.24%), anxiety disorder (1.8%) and pelvic inflammatory disease (2.04%). Just over one per cent of the sample took time off due to migraines, which account for just 0.5% of the male absenteeism during this time. Only 0.24% of women took time off due to being pregnant in this cycle and a minimal 0.07% of females took time off because they were nauseas or vomiting during their pregnancies.

The biggest difference in sick leave diagnosis between men and women is depressive disorder. While a mere 0.70% of men take sick leave because of depressive disorders, it accounts for 1.2% of sick leave taken by women.

Johnson said, “Whatever there reason, companies should take depressed staff seriously. Those women suffering from depression take an average 8.64 days off per depressive incidence. Counselling psychologist Robin Farrington explained, “Stress is part of life and is essentially reflected by the rate of wear and tear experienced by our bodies. Although we cannot avoid stress, we need to learn how to minimize its detrimental effects.

“In general, women are experiencing increased stress. This is related to the changing roles in society. More and more women are employed in a full-time capacity but yet simultaneously they are still fulfilling traditional mother and wife roles. The dual role that has become expected means that women are finding it increasingly difficult to fulfil their responsibility which in turn leads to increased stress. Despite the added role, women are still shouldering the major responsibility for child rearing and house-making.

Farrington said that just as each individual is responsible for their own physical well-being, they are also responsible for their own psychological wellness.

“It is incumbent for each individual to manage their stress load. Although it might be difficult for women to take time off work, they need to take time out to nurture themselves. This should include time for regular exercise. In addition, woman can reduce stress by identifying the sources of stress, living a more balanced life, managing time, accepting support from others, knowing when to say “no” and developing coping skills for stress relief.

“Attentive men and/or husbands can do much to reduce the stress experienced by women though becoming more involved in the domestic duties and sharing responsibilities in the home,” Farrington said.

Johnson added, “Because women are often more responsible for children than their male counterparts, they are the ones who take time off, disguised as sick leave, when their children are ill. This responsibility towards children needs to be addressed in the work place and if necessary, flexible working arrangements for women with sick children should be introduced in order to alleviate the need for women to abuse the system.”

Tuesday, October 16, 2007

Absenteeism – truth can be stranger than fiction

In 2006, the sixty companies comprising more than 100 000 employees in the CAM Solutions absenteeism study have had to deal with a myriad of reasons for absenteeism. This is according to CAMS CEO Johnny Johnson, who says that while the highest number of employees take absenteeism for the same reason—influenza, bronchitis, back pain and gastroenteritis—it is the reasons seldom given by doctors to explain sick absenteeism that provide the most interest.

“An employee in our of our sample companies was recently excused for one day because of a temporary loss of smell and taste. One has to ask how this would have impacted on his or her productivity. Another was excused because of a fingernail infection. In this case, a typist might have a legitimate reason to be absent, but it does seem a rather feeble excuse. Another employee had a foreign body lodged in his nose, a reason more often given for not attending pre-school than adult work. Another took two days off due to sneezing, and one has to feel that the sneezing must have been pretty bad for a doctor to book him off for so long. Another employee had pain in his face; another took two days off because of acne. Another employee received two days sick leave because of the effects he had suffered after receiving a human bite. One employee was given two days off because he was scared of cancer, fortunately though, he didn’t actually have cancer,” he notes.

Johnson says that nothing depicts the human condition better than reading the reasons for absenteeism on sick notes.

“We all have times when we are off ill and we all need understanding and compassion, even if those reasons are obscure. Doctors also face the challenge of caring for their patient while as the same time, honestly giving the reasons that this person has not attended work. The human resource or line manager must also show compassion for the myriad of often-strange excuses that their employees provide when they return to work.”

Johnson explains that by monitoring employee absenteeism and the reasons for it, managers can quickly see who the absenteeism abusers are.

“Mostly we find that employees, who are absent regularly, often on the same day of the week, and for short periods of two days or less, are abusing the system. Knowing who these employees are goes a long way towards fixing the problem. They can be counseled, placed on wellness management programmes and disciplined if necessary. By identifying trends in absenteeism and instituting return to work counseling sessions and wellness management programmes companies can drastically reduce the instances of sick leave abuse, and hopefully see less bizarre reasons for employee absenteeism,” he adds.