Health & Wellness
 

Work Stress Leads To Increased Absenteeism, Disability: StatsCan CBC News : http://www.cbc.ca/health/story/2007/12/19/stress-report.html#skip300x250 Work stress is seriously affecting employees' performances, leading to a decrease in productivity, more missed days from work and increased absenteeism, according to a new Statistics Canada report. The findings, taken from the 2002 Canadian Community Health Survey, were published Wednesday in Perspectives on Labour and Income, a StatsCan publication. The strain a particular job places on a person, which takes into account psychological effect, decision-making ability and pace of work, was one of the variables measured in the report. It found that male employees who had high-strain jobs were 1.7 times more likely than those with low-strain jobs to report that they had performed less work due to a long-term health condition and 1.5 times more likely to report having taken at least one disability day in the two weeks prior to participating in the survey. Physical exertion and insecurity about one's job also led to stressful workplace conditions, the study finds. More men than women reported their jobs required a lot of physical exertion — 48 per cent for men versus 40 per cent for women. Job insecurity was about the same for men and women, with 15 per cent of each group reporting a high amount in the workplace. Continue Article Women were more likely than men to report work stress — 28 per cent said they had high-strain positions and 17 per cent said they had low-strain jobs, while 20 per cent of men reported high-strain jobs and 24 per cent said they had low-strain positions. One-third of women surveyed said they were a bit or extremely stressed most days at work — versus 29 per cent of men. And shift workers (29 per cent) reported having high-strain jobs more often than other employees (20 per cent). They were also more likely to say that their jobs are physically demanding (53 per cent) than other employees (40 per cent). "A supportive environment both at and away from work may help prevent reduced work activities by mitigating the effects of work-related stress," reads the report.

Finding Alzheimer’s Before a Mind Fails Excerpts from: New York Times Article http://www.nytimes.com By Denise Grady. “Alzheimer’s disease may be a chronic condition in which changes begin in midlife or even earlier,” said Dr. John C. Morris, director of the Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center at Washington University in St. Louis, where Ms. Kerley volunteers for studies. But currently, the diagnosis is not made until symptoms develop, and by then it may already be too late to rescue the brain. Drugs now in use temporarily ease symptoms for some, but cannot halt the underlying disease. Many scientists believe the best hope of progress, maybe the only hope, lies in detecting the disease early and devising treatments to stop it before brain damage becomes extensive. Better still, they would like to intervene even sooner, by identifying risk factors and treating people preventively — the same strategy that has markedly lowered death rates from heart disease, stroke and some cancers.

Top Three New Year's Financial Resolutions Are you the Great Procrastinator? Here are some New Year's Financial Resolutions to get the year started right from Ottawa author and CFP, Robert Abboud. His book, No Regrets, A Common Sense Guide to Achieving And Affording YourLife Goals offers readers timely advice. "By following these simple suggestions, you will be able to look back on 2008 with No Regrets." http://www.newswire.ca/en/releases/archive/January2008/02/c9678.html?view=print Financial Resolutions for 2008 #1 Take Control of Your Cashflow. Too many people live month-to-month. They are not aware of where their money goes, and they feel like they are never getting ahead of the game. A business would never consider working without a budget, neither should you. #2 Find Out What Your Magic Number is. More than 73% of Canadians say that a financial plan is important to them but less than 30% actually have one. At the bare minimum, ask your advisor for a retirement plan that includes your magic number--the amount you need to save each month so you can hit your retirement goal when you want to. #3 Set Three Life Goals and Work Towards Them. Set an hour aside and start a list of goals you want to accomplish during your lifetime. Do you want to start your own business? Do you want to take a family trip to Disney in five years? Visit Tuscany for your 10th anniversary? Set these goals down in writing and then pick your top three to focus on this year. For full release visit www.lifegoalsplanning.com/media/html

Forgiveness May Be Good For Health 3 Jan 2008, 1531 hrs IST,ANI SMS NEWS to 58888 for latest updates WASHINGTON: If you're holding a grudge against someone, waste no time in pardoning him or her, for a study in the January issue of Mayo Clinic Women's Health Source has suggested that forgiveness might be good for your health. Forgiveness means acknowledging hurt and then letting it go, along with the burden of anger and resentment. According to the journal, having bitterness for someone might affect your cardiovascular and nervous systems. In one study, it was found that who focused on a personal grudge had elevated blood pressure and heart rates, as well as increased muscle tension and feelings of being less in control. When they were asked to imagine forgiving the person who had hurt them, the participants said that they felt more positive and relaxed, and thus the changes dissipated. When it comes to learning how to forgive - talking with a friend, therapist or adviser might be helpful during the process, to sort through feelings and stay on track. The journal has covered four steps that will help you learn forgiveness. The first step is to acknowledge the pain and anger felt as a result of someone else's actions. For forgiveness to occur, the situation needs to be looked at honestly. In the second step, you should recognize that healing requires change, followed by the finding a new way to think about the person who caused the pain. Finally in the last step, you will begin to experience the emotional relief that comes with forgiveness. It might include increased compassion for others who have experienced similar hurt.