Corporate Social Responsibility Press Release
provided by 
8.26.2008 - 11:15am ET
News from:
Lonestart
LoneStart Wellness Offers a Politically Attractive (Even Patriotic) Solution to Our National Health Care Crisis
(CSRwire) Austin, TX - Aug. 26 /PRNewswire/ -- Health care cost and availability is
on our nation's political radar, and LoneStart Wellness is proposing a
politically attractive and patriotic solution to our national health care
crisis. The current epidemic of obesity and inactivity is straining finite
health care resources and forcing hard choices on the part of
policy-makers, health care providers, federal, state and local agencies,
employers, employees and their families.
By promoting what it calls "Viral Wellness," LoneStart is proving that
wellness, like illness, can be contagious, and is challenging both
political parties and all candidates running for national, state and local
office to embrace a practical and patriotic solution to our country's
current health care crisis. Jay Seifert, LoneStart co-founder, points out
that without any government funding, each of us can play a role in turning
the epidemic of obesity and overweight around. He adds that 57 percent of
deaths result from chronic disease, and that 80 percent of all chronic
disease is caused by three preventable health behaviors -- poor nutrition
and overeating, physical inactivity and smoking -- behaviors each of us
has the power to change.
"We are at a point in this country where a national campaign is needed
to help people realize that they have the opportunity and the ability to
make positive and realistic changes in their daily lifestyle choices,"
says Seifert. "The solution to our health care crisis is prevention, and
that will only happen when at-risk individuals are informed, motivated and
challenged with a positive, realistic and forgiving opportunity to change
their behavior."
Rebecca Davis, Ph.D., Executive Director, National Cooperative of
Health Networks Association, says that effective, affordable employee and
community wellness is a real need among their member organizations.
"Important benefits accrue for our members' partners when they are able to
promote a new 'culture of wellness' among their employees, their families
and the communities they serve. We like the fact that LoneStart recognizes
that we all have the responsibility and the opportunity to make wellness
available, achievable and sustainable."
The concept of Viral Wellness grew out of LoneStart's experience that
wellness is contagious. "We came to realize that most of us want to be
well, and if we have a reasonable expectation of success, we will make
positive changes in our daily choices regarding our health. Once we prove
to ourselves we can be successful, we tend to become enthusiastic
advocates for the strategy that helped us meet our goals and we "spread"
wellness on to family and friends," says Seifert.
As an example of LoneStart's effectiveness, Seifert says that of just
the rural and community hospitals that have implemented the LoneStart
Wellness strategy, more than 8,000 pounds have been lost and body mass
index (BMI) has been reduced from between .5 to more than 6 points.
"For the past three years, LoneStart Wellness has been making a
difference in several of our member hospitals. They have demonstrated that
people will respond to the opportunity to make positive choices when those
choices are based on valid and easy-to-apply behavior modification
principles as they work toward establishing long-term behavior change.
What started as a grassroots effort has grown into an effective strategy
for lasting change based on individual accountability and teamwork," says
David Pearson, CEO, Texas Organization of Rural & Community Hospitals. He
adds that, "we are all stakeholders in this effort, and together we can
turn the epidemic of obesity and inactivity around and reduce our risk for
serious chronic illnesses. At the same time, we can effectively reduce our
health care costs and the impact those costs have on our economy."
The U.S. spends more than $2 trillion annually on health care, and the
annual economic impact on the U.S. economy of the most common chronic
diseases has recently been calculated in a study by the Milken Institute
to be more than $1 trillion. Seven chronic diseases -- cancer, diabetes,
hypertension, stroke, heart disease, pulmonary conditions and mental
illness -- have a total impact on the economy of $1.3 trillion per year.
The Milken study went on to name the most important factor in reducing
chronic disease -- obesity, which if rates declined could lead to $60
billion less in treatment costs and $254 billion in increased
productivity. "That $314 billion is roughly equivalent to federal and
state spending on the Medicaid program each year," says Seifert.
Seifert adds that waiting for government intervention to create
programs to do what each of us already has the power to change for
ourselves, is not a viable option. "By promoting our individual and
collective responsibility to change unhealthy behaviors as a personal and
patriotic duty, each of us becomes empowered to make our own long term
health a priority while at the same time, dramatically reducing the burden
currently being placed on our health care system. LoneStart Wellness will
continue to demonstrate that with imagination, vision and initiative, a
low-cost grassroots effort can move us toward a permanent, new culture of
wellness."
About LoneStart
The LoneStart Wellness Initiative is based on the premise that each of
us must take personal responsibility to make better nutritional choices and
become more physically active. The behavior-based strategy provides
participants with the opportunity and tools to make modest yet meaningful
changes that lead to long term, sustainable results. Visit their Web site
at www.lonestartnow.com
For more information please contact:
Melinda Seifert, LoneStart
+1-512-894-3440
News Categories:
Health & Wellness and Volunteerism
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