It’s so surprising how many employees get through each day of work consuming multiple cups of coffee! Coffee, particularly if taken with cream, fills us up for hours and keeps our minds firing on all cylinders. Seems great, right?

Wrong. Coffee is an anti-nutrient – this means it actually depletes our bodies of vitamins and minerals, particularly calcium. So, it doesn’t give us nutrition; it removes nutrition stores from our bodies.

And….as soon as the high, created by the coffee, leaves our bodies, we crash….this is because coffee majorly interferes with our blood sugar. In nutrition school, they told us that if all we do is get someone off coffee, we have done our job!

And did you know that we crave coffee when we are feeling loaded down with unwanted responsibilities, worrying about money and looking for meaning in our lives? Yes…there is an emotional connection to everything we crave. But I digress….

So…if coffee is not the answer to getting through the day, what is? Let’s explore the answers by looking at why health and wellness is important to employees.

Here are 10 reasons why health and wellness is important to employees. Health and wellness helps employees:

1. Concentrate for long periods of time. 
2. Stay in a good mood in order to have positive interactions with others. 
3. Keep their energy levels high in order to work 8 hours plus.
4. Feel confident in themselves.
5. Make it into work each day! Some employees are not paid when they miss work due to sickness.
6. Remain calm and live in the present moment, as opposed to worrying about the past or future.
7. Think creatively if their jobs demand that.
8. Make good decisions and act with integrity.
9. Be productive for many years without burning out or being diagnosed with a health condition.
10. Have the energy to be their best when they leave work!

Here are 6 tips for improving your health and wellness as an employee (or an employee you love):

1. Eat small meals every three hours always including a protein source – this is what regulates the blood sugar and keeps the concentration and energy levels high for long periods of time. This is also what helps you remain in a good mood for hours.
   
2. Find out your food sensitivities – stay away from the foods that make you tired, anxious, depressed, angry, irritable or stressed.
   
3. Drink at least 8 eight-ounce glasses of filtered water a day – water eliminates waste from your body, energizes you and de-stresses you (to name a few benefits)!
   
4. Spend time doing what you LOVE -if you are passionate about your work, excellent! But if you are not, use your evenings or weekends to do what you love!
   
5. Exercise for at least 20 minutes a day – when your body feel strong, your mind feel strong. Endorphins are vital to feeling happy, remaining energetic and thinking creatively! 
   
6. Be loving at every opportunity – Be kind to the cashier, the stranger you pass or the receptionist. When you compliment or show others you care, it helps you feel incredible inside. Remember to be loving to yourself. This increases your confidence and helps you act with integrity.    

It is clear to see why health and wellness is important to employees in all of these ways. It is also easy to see how SIMPLE it is for you to improve your health and wellness. My suggestion is that you choose one of these six ideas for improving your health and wellness and focus on it for one month until it becomes a habit and then add in your next area of focus until you are eventually where you want to be! September is often seen as a start to a new year…does health and wellness need to play a more important role in your life at this time?       

Hi! I’m Meredith Deasley BA, RHN, RNCP, ACC. I am a Registered Holistic Nutritionist and Certified Life Coach. If you are interested in booking me for a corporate seminar to teach your employees more ways to improve their health and wellness, please have a look at my website for various suggested topics. If you need food sensitivity testing or want additional ideas for your health and wellness, you can contact me for an individualized consultation.