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Welcome from Vantage Business Support & Insurance Services
As an added benefit to our customers and associates VANTAGE is publishing a semimonthly newsletter with information, interactive tools, podcasts and other resources to help you live healthier. We will explore topics on total health and resources for you and your family, including fitness, nutrition, mental and physical health, weight management and more.
Thank you for being part of the VANTAGE family.
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Please view our products list in the right sidebar.
This is just a sampling of what we feel would be important to you. We have much more to offer. If you have any questions or need more information please contact us at 877-886-8277 or click the link below.
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How your office chair is killing you
 Try using case studies, success stories,
'We are sitting ourselves to death,' a doctor says in a new book, and obesity isn't the only risk.
Standing while you read this could do something toward saving your life, according to Dr. James Levine, whose new book reveals how he came to the scientific conclusion that our chairs are killing us.
"Sitting is more dangerous than smoking, kills more people than HIV and is more treacherous than parachuting. We are sitting ourselves to death," says Levine, a professor of medicine at the U.S.-based Mayo Clinic, in his book "Get Up!: Why Your Chair is Killing You and What You Can Do About It."
Levine's claims are based on a study of "non-exercise activity thermogenesis" or NEAT, which is the amount of energy we use doing everything except sleeping, eating and exercise. NEAT activities include going to work, shoveling snow and taking a walk -- and the more active your job is, the more NEAT calories you burn.
"Those individuals who are lean are up and walking about 2¼ more hours a day than those individuals who are obese," Levine said in an online seminar last week.
And although these extra couple of hours may contain a relatively small amount of movement, they have huge health implications, according to Levine -- and obesity isn't the only possible consequence.
Low NEAT is linked to, among other things, weight gain, diabetes, heart attacks and cancer, he said.
Active workplaces
Standing offices and classrooms -- with high desks that keep you on your feet -- are one way to address low NEAT, according to Levine. He argued that workplaces in which people stand and move about have more productive workforces.
"What is critically important is that companies that deploy these types of programs show increased hardcode productivity of around 11 percent," he said.
The doctor also pointed to studies run in more active classrooms across Sweden, Germany and the U.S. which found "on average, kid's grades improve 10-15 percent against (average) equivalent child equivalents".
Taking a stand against standing?
The standing office has come under fire from some quarters, however, with critics arguing that standing at your desk all day has its own negative health implications.
Research by the Toronto Workers Health & Safety Centre found that standing for prolonged periods could lead to, among other things, sore backs, feet and varicose veins.
The New York Times Magazine columnist Dan Kois, who underwent a month-long standing experiment, also highlighted possible social problems with the standing desk in an article entitled "Sitting, the great leveler."
"From the lowliest peasant to the mightiest pharaoh, who doesn't enjoy a good sit?" Kois wrote, quoting Mr. Burns from "The Simpsons." "I had never really thought about the social implications of standing versus sitting until this month brought them to the fore."
But for those who prefer to take a seat, all is not lost, with a recent study indicating that exercise may offset the dangers of sitting. According to researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center, one hour of physical exercise could counteract the effects of sitting for six to seven hours a day.
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DID YOU KNOW???
Quinoa
If you've been hearing more about quinoa lately, it's not a surprise. Considered a "super food," quinoa (pronounced KEEN-wah) is a relative of beets, spinach and Swiss chard, but its seeds resemble couscous and are prepared and eaten in much the same way. Available in light brown, red and even black varieties, quinoa is light yet filling and has a subtly nutty flavor.
Quinoa is:
- High in magnesium - magnesium helps relax blood vessels, which may result in fewer headaches for migraine sufferers and decreased risk of hypertension and stroke.
- A good source of manganese, iron, copper, phosphorous, vitamin B2 and other essential minerals.
- The richest source of protein of any grain. It is especially high in lysine, an amino acid that is typically low in other grains. Quinoa's protein is complete, containing all nine essential amino acids - a rarity in the plant kingdom.
- Gluten-free and easy to digest.
Once available only in natural foods stores, quinoa is becoming more mainstream by the day and is easily found in major grocery stores as well.
SOURCE: health diaries
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Here's your "QuoteAction" for this issue:
"If you want happiness for an hour, take a nap. If you want happiness for a day go fishing. If you want happiness for a year inherit a fortune. If you want happiness for a lifetime, help somebody."
Chinese Proverb Your action for today is to help one of your family, friends and/or co-workers who are experiencing a challenge.
Have an extraordinary day!
SOURCE: Betty Jo Waxman
Productive Learning & Leisure, LLC |
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Disclaimer of Liability
Our firm provides the information in this e-newsletter for general guidance only, and does not constitute the provision of legal advice, tax advice, accounting services, investment advice, or professional consulting of any kind. The information provided herein should not be used as a substitute for consultation with professional tax, accounting, legal, or other competent advisers. Before making any decision or taking any action, you should consult a professional adviser who has been provided with all pertinent facts relevant to your particular situation. Tax articles in this e-newsletter are not intended to be used, and cannot be used by any taxpayer, for the purpose of avoiding accuracy-related penalties that may be imposed on the taxpayer. The information is provided "as is," with no assurance or guarantee of completeness, accuracy, or timeliness of the information, and without warranty of any kind, express or implied, including but not limited to warranties of performance, merchantability, and fitness for a particular purpose.
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| Health & Wellness Products |
VANTAGE has a wide range of products designed to aid in health & wellness for both your personal and business life.
These products include:
Health Insurance Exchange
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Life
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| CONTACTS |
Please contact one of our VANTAGE professionals for assistance or click on the help picture. Paul White 510-595-0904
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