Mobile technology, remote coaching, financial incentives may help improve diet, activity level
Posted: May 29, 2012 at 12:16 am
Public release date: 28-May-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Marla Paul marla-paul@northwestern.edu 312-503-8928 JAMA and Archives Journals
CHICAGO The diet and activity levels of patients may be improved through use of mobile technology, remote coaching and financial incentives, according to a report of a randomized controlled trial published in the May 28 issue of Archives of Internal Medicine, a JAMA Network publication.
Not following a physician's lifestyle change advice is a major barrier to patients achieving effective preventive care. Many physicians are skeptical that patients will change their unhealthy behaviors, and physicians also report a lack of time and training to effectively counsel their patients, researchers write in the study background.
"This study's interventions leveraged handheld technology to create efficient interventions that make self-monitoring more convenient, extend decision support into life contexts where lifestyle choices are made, and convey time-stamped behavioral data to paraprofessionals who provide coaching remotely," the researchers note.
Bonnie Spring, Ph.D., of Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, and colleagues randomly assigned 204 adult patients (48 men) with elevated intake of saturated fat and low intake of fruits and vegetables, and high sedentary leisure time and low physical activity into 1 of 4 treatments. The treatments were: increase fruit/vegetable intake and physical activity, decrease fat and sedentary leisure, decrease fat and increase physical activity, and increase fruit/vegetable intake and decrease sedentary leisure. Patients used personal digital assistant devices to record and self-regulate their behaviors.
During three weeks of treatment, patients uploaded their data daily and communicated as needed with their coaches by telephone or by email. The participants could earn $175 for meeting goals during the treatment phase. In addition, there was a 20-week follow-up during which patients could earn from $30 to $80 for continuing to record and transmit their data.
"The increase fruits/vegetables and decrease sedentary leisure treatment maximized healthy lifestyle change compared with the other interventions," the authors comment. They note that lifestyle gains diminished once treatment ended, as expected, but improvements persisted throughout the follow-up period.
From baseline to the end of treatment to the end of the follow-up, respectively, mean (average) servings per day of fruits/vegetables changed from 1.2 to 5.5 to 2.9, mean minutes per day of sedentary leisure from 219.2 to 89.3 to 125.7, and daily calories from saturated fat from 12 percent to 9.4 percent to 9.9 percent, according to the study results.
"This study demonstrates the feasibility of changing multiple unhealthy diet and activity behaviors simultaneously, efficiently and with minimal face-to-face contact by using mobile technology, remote coaching, and incentives," the authors comment.
Read the original here:
Mobile technology, remote coaching, financial incentives may help improve diet, activity level
Wedding Series| Do’s
Posted: at 12:15 am
Read the original here:
Wedding Series| Do's
National Senior Health & Fitness Day promotes ways to live well and age well
Posted: at 12:15 am
On Thursday, May 30, 2012 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Fayette Senior Services will be among more than 1,000 organizations participating in the 19th annual National Senior Health & Fitness Day, the nations largest health promotion event for older adults.
The free event will be held at FSSs Life Enrichment Center, 4 Center Drive, Fayetteville (across from the Fayette County Justice Center).
An estimated 100,000 older adults nationwide will participate in a wide variety of local fitness activities. This will be the second year that Fayette Senior Services will participate in the May event that is held in recognition of Older Americans Month.
Attendees will have an opportunity to visit with exhibitors and learn important information and fun ways to improve overall their health and wellness. Fayette Senior Services Ultimate Cafe, winner of the Platinum Plate Award at the 2010 Fayette Chamber Community Expo, will be open to expo attendees from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.
National Senior Health & Fitness Day helps create awareness for the many resources in the community that can help you maintain a healthier lifestyle, said Morgan Smith, FSS Program Coordinator. Getting connected with the right resources is the first step in learning how to live well so you can age well.
For more information about National Senior Health & Fitness Day, contact Morgan Smith at 770-461-0813 ext. 129.
See the original post:
National Senior Health & Fitness Day promotes ways to live well and age well
Retirement Myths: I Can Start Saving For Retirement When I’m 40
Posted: at 12:15 am
(credit: Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images)
BOSTON (CBS) The reality is that you are going to be responsible for your own retirement savings. Fewer employers are offering pensions to employees.
Waiting to start to save until you are 40 is a big financial mistake. You have already let the key years for saving pass you by.
If you start at forty and plan to retire at age 67 you have 27 years of savings and investing. But if you start at age twenty you have 47 years.
The longer you wait to start saving for retirement the more money you will need to save.
If you want a $1 million in your retirement nest egg, and I used an 8% return which is realistic, and you start at age 20 you will need to come up with $160 a month for your retirement account. That will amount to about $94,000 saved over 47 years.
If you wait until age 40 to start you will need to invest $880 a month, thats $284,000 or 3 times the amount if you had started earlier.
At 40 you could have kids needing braces, college tuition, a car. Then there is really no money left over for retirement savings.
I have included a chart to illustrate retirement savings at various times in your working career on our website.
You are never too young to start thinking about saving for retirement. A kid in high school with her first job should be introduced to retirement planning by her parents.
See the original post here:
Retirement Myths: I Can Start Saving For Retirement When I’m 40
Definition Personal Health and Fitness Promo – Video
Posted: at 12:15 am
See more here:
Definition Personal Health and Fitness Promo - Video
Electric Shavers vs Razor Blades – Cost and Performance – Video
Posted: at 12:15 am
Visit link:
Electric Shavers vs Razor Blades - Cost and Performance - Video
This how Paul Chek works with his clients and what he thinks of humanity as a whole – Video
Posted: at 12:15 am
Visit link:
This how Paul Chek works with his clients and what he thinks of humanity as a whole - Video
Letitia’s Wedding Surprise Performance of Love You I Do – Video
Posted: at 12:15 am
Read more here:
Letitia's Wedding Surprise Performance of Love You I Do - Video
Veterans advocate revives privacy war
Posted: at 12:15 am
Date: Monday May. 28, 2012 8:11 PM ET
OTTAWA A veterans advocate has complained to the privacy watchdog about an internal report that largely exonerates federal bureaucrats who spread around his personal medical information.
The Veterans Affairs investigation into Sean Bruyea's case has revived questions about how seriously the Harper government has treated breaches of privacy of ex-soldiers.
Privacy Commissioner Jennifer Stoddart concluded almost two years ago that the use of Bruyea's medical information in two 2006 briefing notes to former veterans minister Greg Thompson broke the law.
However, an outside report commissioned by the department found no "malice" or "fault" in the actions of bureaucrats and senior department officials.
The report noted that Bruyea's medical information was stitched into several other notes that were not part of the privacy commissioner's investigation.
Bruyea, who described the report as a whitewash, says his privacy was violated once again because the consultant had full, unfettered access to the briefings.
He says no one from Amprax Inc., headed by a former senior bureaucrat Alain Jolicoeur, contacted him for either permission to view the material or for input into the report.
"I certainly ... never would authorize an individual like Mr. Jolicoeur who has an extensive background as a senior bureaucrat which places him in a conflict of interest in assessing whether his peers broke the law," Bruyea said in his letter to the privacy commissioner.
"In authorizing this investigation and releasing unprecedented large amounts of my personal information to Mr. Jolicoeur, it is apparent that senior officials grossly and flagrantly broke privacy laws in order to solicit a report which would justify their breaking of those same laws in the first place. (Veterans Affairs) has crudely attempted but failed to justify the unjustifiable."
Go here to see the original:
Veterans advocate revives privacy war
Westerville military memorial allows honoring personal heroes, too
Posted: at 12:15 am
By Lucas Sullivan
The Columbus Dispatch Monday May 28, 2012 6:45 AM
Bill Megla shoves the joystick of his electric scooter forward as his cloudy blue eyes peer out from under a dark baseball cap with the letters POW on the front.
There are 3,000 American flags to the left and right of Megla, 86, but all he focuses on is the Freedom Wall, a World War II memorial near the southwest corner of County Line Road and Cleveland Avenue in Westerville.
The wall has 530 gold stars, each of them representing many service members who died or went missing in WWII. It is part of Westervilles Field of Heroes, a Memorial Day tradition where full-size American flags can be dedicated to personal heroes as well as to those who served in the military.
I saw a lot of them get killed, Megla said as he turned away from the WWII wall. I lost my best friend during the war. He took a mortar round, and that was it.
Megla was a first scout in the Armys 9th Infantry Division in 1943. He joined as a second scout, he said, but was promoted when the first scout was severely injured. His duties were straightforward: Stay 100 to 200 yards in front of the line and warn of danger.He was captured by German soldiers during a firefight in Blaimont, Belgium, in 1944 and spent eight months as a prisoner of war before being released. He was awarded the Bronze Star and Purple Heart for his performance during combat and for injuries he suffered as a prisoner.
Yesterday in Westerville, the former owner of a replacement-window shop couldnt travel 10 yards without someone stopping him and thanking him for his service.
Thats what is so great about this place the stories, said Walter Lundstrom of Westerville, who dedicated flags to his heroes: his wife, Gail; his mother, Anna; and his late father, Olov. Obviously, losing your life or limbs for your country is another level of sacrifice. ... There are also heroes still in our own lives that we can honor.
In its fourth year, the Field of Heroes is the idea of Larry Jenkins, a member of the Westerville Rotary Club. About 1,000 of the 3,000 flags will be dedicated to someones hero, he said, and the rest serve as a memorial to all those who died during combat.
Read more from the original source:
Westerville military memorial allows honoring personal heroes, too