National Thyroid Awareness Month: Resources for Support

January is National Thyroid Awareness Month, a month dedicated to encouraging knowledge, understanding and awareness of thyroid importance, and prevention of thyroid cancer and disorders. During National Thyroid Awareness Month, organizations—like the American Thyroid Association and The National Academy of Hypothyroidism—promote a full range of thyroid tests and treatment options that you can get from your healthcare provider.

About the Thyroid

The thyroid is a small, butterfly-shaped gland located in the base of the neck just below the Adam's apple. Although relatively small, the thyroid gland plays a huge role in the body, influencing the function of many of the body’s most important organs, including the heart, brain, liver, kidneys and skin. Ensuring that the thyroid gland is healthy and functioning properly is important to the body's overall well-being. By secreting a hormone that regulates your metabolism, your thyroid makes sure your body uses energy at the proper rate.

If your thyroid is not functioning properly, your metabolism may burn energy rapidly or not quickly enough. Fatigue, weight gain, sensitivity to hot or cold temperatures, or rapid heart rate could be a result of an over- or under-active thyroid. It is estimated that millions of people, mostly women, have undiagnosed thyroid disorders.

Resources for Help

If you are experiencing any unusual symptoms, contact your doctor and be sure to ask whether your thyroid could be causing the problem. Don’t have a doctor? If you are a Health Advocate member, call us! You will speak to a Personal Health Advocate, who can help you find an in-network, local, primary care physician or a specialist.  Health Advocate can also help you schedule your appointment, get a second opinion, and more.

If you do not have access to Health Advocate, The American Thyroid Association website offers an easy-to-use search tool that can help locate physicians in your area.

Learn about different thyroid conditions:

·         Hyperthyroidism FAQ

·         Hypothyroidism FAQ

·         Thyroid Cancer FAQ

·         Graves’ Disease FAQ

Other websites offering support include:

·         American Academy of Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery: www.entnet.org

·         American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists: www.aace.com

·         American Association of Endocrine Surgeons : www.endocrinesurgery.org

·         International Thyroid Oncology Group: www.itog.org

·         Graves’ Disease and Thyroid Foundation: www.NGDF.org 

·         Light of Life Foundation: www.checkyourneck.com 

·         National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health: http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/types/thyroid

ThyCa: Thyroid Cancer Survivors’ Association, Inc.: www.thyca.org

Improve employee health, reduce costs with Health Advocate’s onsite Biometric Screening Program

Biometric screening programs are growing in popularity due to their potential to help curb and control employee health costs. They can also help employees be more aware of their health risks and encourage them to take action to improve their health. Choosing the Health Advocate™ onsite Biometric Screening Program is an important step toward improving your employees’ health and reducing healthcare costs for your organization. Our biometric screenings identify health risks early and can be a vital part of your company’s overall wellness plan.

Health Advocate’s onsite Biometric Screening Program conducts health screenings at your work site. These screenings identify risks for conditions such as hypertension, diabetes and heart disease. The program includes screenings for cholesterol, BMI, blood pressure, blood glucose, and more. We offer fasting and non-fasting screenings, finger pokes and blood draws. Additional screening options include bone density testing, colorectal cancer and TB testing, and certain immunizations, among others. If you wish, you can choose to offer incentives (such as discounts on healthcare premiums, a gift card, or company tchotchke) to encourage employees to participate in the screenings.

Licensed Health Advocate™ clinicians, including registered nurses, EMTs, paramedics and health educators, administer all screenings. These professionals also set up, monitor and streamline the entire process. Our staff talks with employees to review test results, answer questions and capitalize on “teachable” moments. We also provide multi-lingual screeners and create all promotional and educational materials to encourage employees to participate.

After the screening event, Health Advocate can provide you with a comprehensive, aggregate (patient de-identified) report of your employees’ results, based on national baseline health data. These reports provide a snapshot of employee health, and these valuable insights can help you design or modify your company-wide wellness program.

Additionally, each employee receives a confidential, personalized report of their screening results. Employees are encouraged to share the results with their primary care physician or Wellness Coach.

Health Advocate’s onsite Biometric Screening Program is seamlessly integrated into our Health Advocacy Program, Wellness Coaching Program and our other solutions. Like all of our programs, our onsite Biometric Screening Program is fully compliant with all HIPAA and GINA privacy regulations.

The Health Advocate onsite Biometric Screening Program is a win-win solution for employers and employees alike. Contact us at 866.385.8033, prompt #2 for more information on how Health Advocate can help improve your employees’ health, or to set up a biometric screening at your location.

Ask a Health Advocate: How can I lose those extra holiday pounds?

You’re not alone—many of us indulged in one too many treats at holiday gatherings. But now that the holiday season has ended and the New Year is here, it’s a great time to get your weight under control again.  

A vital step in any weight management plan is to discover and implement strategies for portion control.  Try these portion control tips and tricks to kick-start your weight loss goals:

• Go smaller. Use smaller plates and bowls to shrink your portion sizes. You can even try using smaller cutlery in order to slow yourself down and take more manageable bites as you eat.

• Cut your portion size in half. For example, if you are used to eating a whole deli sandwich at lunch, just eat half and supplement your meal with fresh fruits and veggies.

• Ask for a doggie bag. Research shows that restaurant portions are often twice as big as they were just 10-15 years ago.  You can even ask your server to box up half your meal before it reaches the table.

• Good things come in smaller packages. Consider buying individually-sized packages of food to help keep portion size under control. Or, if you enjoy the cost-savings of buying in bulk, divvy the food up by putting single servings in small sandwich bags.

• Know the standards. Do you know how many cookies, crackers, or chips there are in a serving? Check the package and see how many servings you are really consuming. Learn what a controlled portion looks like by measuring it a few times. Then you'll be able to "eyeball" it and guess more accurately. To learn how well you know your portion sizes, take the Portion Distortion quizzes offered by MyPlate!

• Don't deny yourself. Indulge in the foods you really love, but in moderation. A food’s taste loses some intensity after a few bites, so those first mouthfuls are the best anyway.

 
If you’re a Health Advocate member with access to the Wellness Coaching program, reach out to your Wellness Coach for one-on-one weight management support.

Have a question for a Health Advocate? Email nhess@healthadvocate.com, and your question may be answered in an upcoming column!

Ask a Health Advocate: How can I manage my time better?

It’s the start of a brand new year, and it’s a great time to get reorganized and make some positive changes! Having better time management skills can help you become more organized and productive. These tips can help you manage your time more efficiently: 

·         Keep track of important activities in a calendar or planner. With work, family, and social obligations, it can be tricky to remember all of your responsibilities throughout the week—writing them down and keeping a record of what you need to do can help! If paper planners aren’t for you, try downloading a planner app, such as the free app Schedule Planner, on your smart phone or tablet.  

·         Make a daily to-do list.Take the first 15 minutes of your day to write down all the things you need to get done, and then check them off as you complete them. Checking off completed tasks can also help you feel a sense of accomplishment.

·         Get organized. Being surrounded by clutter can keep you from thinking clearly and working efficiently. A clean, organized space can help relieve stress and make you feel more relaxed.

·         Schedule time for interruptions.There will always be things that come up at the last minute, so be realistic and expect the unexpected. Add some extra time into your schedule for these types of things.

·         Take breaks. Allow yourself a few 10-minute breaks during the day to just breathe. Taking time to relax and refocus can help with getting your tasks completed.

·         Take some “me” time. Learn when to say no to an unnecessary event or request. It is great to help others, but you have to help and take care of yourself first. Pencil in some “me” time to do one of your favorite activities!

·         Reach out. Delegate when you can, and ask for help when you need it. Our personal expectations and pride lead us to try to do everything ourselves. But allowing others to contribute their ideas and input will help you meet deadlines and encourage collaboration!

·         Use time wisely. Reduce time spent watching TV and mindlessly surfing the web. Instead, focus on activities that have a positive impact on you—for example, make a healthy dinner for yourself, get some exercise, or work on one of the items in your to-do list.

Remember, if you’re a Health Advocate member with access to the Wellness Coaching program, you can call your Wellness Coach for more time management tips!

Have a question for a Health Advocate? Email nhess@healthadvocate.com, and your question may be answered in an upcoming column!

WOW – Workout of the Week: Leg Raises

This week’s workout is Leg Raises. Leg Raises are a great lower-body exercise for strengthening your abs, specifically your lower abs, plus your hamstrings, quads, and backside.  Here’s how to do them:

• Start out flat on your back, placing your hands underneath your backside, palms facing down.

• Next, keeping your feet together, raise your legs until your body is making about a 90 degree angle. Be sure to tighten your stomach to engage your abs.

• Finally, slowly bring your legs back down to the starting position, keeping your feet together. Congratulations—you just completed one leg raise! Try doing 2-3 sets of about 30 leg raises, or as many as you feel comfortable doing. 

For added difficulty, lift your head off of the ground and stick your chin out forward—this will engage your abs even more. Try adding 5-10 Leg raises to your sets each day this week! 

We hope you’ll try Leg Raises over the weekend and then build this exercise into your daily routine Monday through Friday of the coming week.  

Want more fitness ideas?  If you’re a Health Advocate member with access to the Wellness Coaching program, reach out to your Wellness Coach for more healthy ideas to get—and stay—fit. And remember, talk to your doctor before beginning any new fitness regimen.