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Newsletter: Preventing depression, let's make it work!

On April 7th 2017, in exactly one week, it’s World Health Day again. This year the central theme is Depression.
We decided to anticipate and share our insights and our material now, in order to allow for sufficient time to help your colleagues focus, as this is a crucial theme in the workplace too. Depression is currently one of the most important risk factors for absenteeism. How to assist employees in arming themselves against mood swings and mild forms of depression, that’s what’s really at stake.
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Previous Newsletters

Newsletter 10/03/'17
Newsletter 03/02/'17
Newsletter 06/01/'17
Newsletter 09/12/'16

Captivating insights on e-health and workplace strategies in a world of change.

Loneliness can seriously damage your health

We are all social beings: contact with others caters for our much needed sense of connection. Moreover, social support tones down negative emotions and reduces the mental and physical impact of misfortune. A problem shared is a problem halved for sure.
As always, there’s two sides to one coin. That a lack of social support has an unhealthy impact is the logical flipside to the positive story - and more and more scientific proof points in this direction. As it turns out, loneliness visibly hurts: scans show that the same brain areas are active as with physical pain. If we take into account the bodily impact of loneliness as well - focusing on blood pressure, immune system and inflammatory responses a.o. - it even proves comparable to physical pain’s impact.
The negative impact of loneliness on health is actually in the same league as smoking and alcohol - and even stronger than that of obesity.
Loneliness raises the risk of an early death to the same extent as
15 cigarettes a day
!
How you perceive solitude, moreover enhances your chance of fear, depression and other mental afflictions, and perturbs your sleep.
In the workplace, solitude and a feeling of isolation can also take their toll: they lead to concentration and reasoning problems. A much needed counterweight is offered by friendship and solidarity: these are in fact the mental equivalents of fruit and vegetables or physical exercise.
Even though in the past, friendships in the workplace were viewed with suspicion from a HR perspective - due to a possible negative spiral after the breakdown of a friendship - it has become obvious that the advantages largely eclipse the disadvantages.

Friendly relations at work lead to better functioning, more job satisfaction and dedication, and reduced turnover intention.

Preventing depression-induced absenteeism? Focus on physical exercise!

Absenteeism related to mental health issues is on the increase, and rather than in the case of physical complaints, it’s long-term and hence very expensive. Stress plays a part, but depression is on the rise too.
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Physical exercise is, as so often, part of the cure: it stimulates the production of and sensitivity to neurotransmitters (substances which facilitate the transfer of signals to the brain), more precisely those which play a part in depression. In cases of mild depression, physical activity is as effective as medication - and almost as good as cognitive behavioral therapy.
You don’t actually have to suffer from depression to benefit from physical exercise: a fit body reacts less vehemently to stress, which keeps you more aloof and focused on the task at hand.
As physical exercise also reinforces your capacity to learn and your memory, it will help you to work more efficiently.

Together, task orientation and efficiency will result in a further reduced risk of stress in the workplace.
Moreover, sustained physical exercise enhances self-confidence
It does so thanks to feelings of control and also through ‘mastery’, the inherent ‘feeling that one can achieve something’. Both in turn help to combat depression.
Is there a type of exercise which gets preference? In order to improve one’s self image, strength training ought to be just as effective as fitness or endurance training. Physically combating depression is best done through fitness training and stretching exercise. But because group strength training also enables social contact and allows for relatively fast results, this distinction is quite relative, and it’s more important to find a good match between an individual and a type of activity: someone who starts doing sport, but drops out, obviously won’t benefit at all.
So an elaborate health policy best aims at stimulating physical exercise to the max - this can definitely help to reduce absenteeism.  
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Curious how ichange3, our effective and fun vitality app,
​can help you achieve your vitality policy?

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What makes ichange3 innovative, appealing and successful?


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The Company Challenge is a clever combo of 5 specially selected ichange3 challenges in the app. Physical exercise plays a key role, thanks to the integrated pedometer.

As a company, you decide how long the Company Challenge should run: one day or rather a whole working week - within the framework of a Vitaly week for instance. The employees can then chose when to take part, and can run through the challenges in the app at their own pace.

Do you want the Company Challenge to be geared to a specific target population? That’s possible too! We’d like to think it over together with you. 

Rediscover the ichange3 packs, now with an updated license system

How many ichange3 users are still active in the app after 3 months? That’s a crucial question, and the answer differs from company to company. That’s why our license system has now been specifically attuned to this.
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Detecting the risk of depression and
​psychosocial work stress (PWS)

Our validated Health Risk Analysis, which is offered in combination with ichange3 in the Golden Pack, is capable of detecting a risk of depression and burnout!! .
  • 8 risk domains (stress, depression, sleep, food, exercise, weight, smoking, alcohol)
  • 12 organizational parameters (work pressure, demand-control, support, bullying, change, expectations, conflicts…)
  • ROI based on productivity (absenteeism - presenteeism)
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Bring your employees in the right mood thanks to our feelgood promotional material.

World Health Day and its central theme ‘depression’ are key here too.
This handy flyer helps employees to counter mood swings and mild forms of depression.

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In the ichange3 app too, we keep inspiring employees with feelgood material.

In the shout*, our Healthy Weekend Habits are reaching full steam.

  • ​​7/4  On World Health Day, we dive deeper into the 5 habits from the flyer
  • 22/4 Earth Day: an ideal opportunity to pay attention to the strong combo nature and physical exercise
  • 29/4 International Dance Day:  how to rhyme healthy exercise with an indispensable feelgood factor. Put on your red shoes and dance the blues away!
Our columnist Vitaly is also present on a weekly basis!
He’ll tackle themes like taking the stairs and walking at lunch in the next weeks, which is no coincidence.

3/5 International Day of Laughter on a Wednesday, which is Vitaly’s weekly column day, but will he see the fun of it? Wait and see.

* The shout tab keeps the ichange3 community up to date on what is happening in the field of vitality,both internationally and nationally - and optionally also in their own company.

This promotional material is free of charge for CompanyPack customers.
Order promotional material, special communications' request?
One adress: communications@brandnewhealth.com

We would love to hear from you soon!


Telephone

+32 16 22 88 93

Email

info@brandnewhealth.com
  • Home
  • Our solutions
    • WORKPLACE HEALTH PROMOTION
    • Population health improvement
    • CHRONIC DISEASE COACHING
  • Fresh insights
  • About
    • Our cycle of change
    • Our Team
  • Contact us