Birthday cake in the kitchen today to celebrate September birthdays!
Try my homemade cheesecake in the break room refrigerator. Enjoy!
Happy Fall - Apple cider doughnuts at the front desk!
If you are one of the 150 million full-time or part-time workers in the United States, you can probably relate to the high-fat, low-fiber, loaded-with-carbs goodies that often make their way into the workplace.
Employers frequently entice employees to meetings with pizza lunches, doughnuts, and sodas, and employees often want to share food to create an atmosphere of camaraderie and good will.
But in the last few years, many area employers and employees have taken up the banner of wellness and decided to encourage healthier eating during the workday.
At Philadelphia City Hall and other city properties, vending machines had a makeover in 2011; now 65 percent of the offerings must be healthy options such as water outnumbering soda, and dried fruit and nuts along with baked chips displayed more prominently than candy.
City Hall also offers employees the Delaware Valley Farm Share program, so that twice a month they can order fresh fruits and vegetables delivered to work. The cost is $25 per delivery. "It's been very well received," said Amanda Wagner, food policy coordinator for Get Healthy Philly.
Most meetings now have pitchers of water instead of soda, and food is rarely part of meetings anymore.
It is a challenge to break old habits, but some companies are finding that doing it together is the answer.
"I do think it can be difficult in terms of eating, but not insurmountable," said Kimberly Eberbach, vice president of wellness and community health for Independence Blue Cross. "If you don't make good choices, it's easy to eat the wrong things. At 3 p.m. you're feeling sluggish and hungry at work, it's good to have water and fruit instead of cupcakes."
In the last few years, Blue Cross has instituted a number of programs to encourage healthier lifestyles. Under the Farm to You program, employees may order an assortment of fruits and vegetables delivered to the office every other week.
The company hosts seminars throughout the year discussing diet and exercise, and sponsors interoffice challenges like the one last year in which groups competed to see who could eat the most fruits and vegetables over a period of months. One group brought in fruits and veggies along with recipes to share to pump up the group.
"Bragging rights go a long way and there is peer pressure," Eberbach said. "People want to feel they are part of something."
The dietitians at Temple University Hospital often make time for a walk during lunch hour, and each month they take turns bringing in a healthy recipe and sharing copies with everyone in the office, said Michelle Conlon, a registered dietitian for the hospital. This summer she brought in a recipe for quinoa salad.
Even those who eat healthy at home can find the workplace challenging. Jill Mascena of Cherry Hill, who worked as a pediatric nurse for 30 years before retiring a year ago, said patients would often bring delicious but high-calorie treats as a thank-you gift. While doctors and nurses enjoyed the caramel corn and the cookies, they would try to eat it only in moderation. "It dawned on me that the only time we ate junk food was when people brought it in to work," she said.
The ARC of Atlantic County, with 270 employees serving area citizens with disabilities and running group homes, started a healthy-lifestyle initiative three years ago. For residents of the homes, they added more exercise classes along with healthier meal choices, and brought in speakers to talk to employees about eating healthier, said Pat Jones, chief operating officer of the ARC, based in Egg Harbor Township.
"We are doing less and less food at meetings," she said. "We are talking a lot about what options there are, and putting recipes together to cook healthier food. Occasionally there is a cake, but there is more fruit than there used to be. We are having conversations about getting rid of snack machines."
Employees are participating in a walking challenge and attending "lunch and learns" about healthier eating and life choices.
The ARC is one of more than 20 companies in New Jersey that have partnered with the Family and Community Health Sciences Department of Rutgers Cooperative Extension in the School of Environmental and Biological Sciences, which is working with the businesses to provide help with better eating and exercise at the workplace.
"We are trying to help organizations move toward a culture of wellness," said Joanne Kinsey, an associate professor in the department. They help companies like the ARC set up wellness committees and find ways to discourage smoking, cope with stress, and eat better in the office.
Replacing Bagel Thursday with Fruit Friday, having produce delivered to the office, and changing what's offered in vending machines are among their suggestions.
Kinsey and professor Kathleen Morgan, chair of the community health science department, work with the companies and put out a newsletter with health information and snack suggestions such as a small yogurt, precut fruit, raisins, dried cranberries or blueberries, and low-cal lunches such as a vegetable wrap or apple tuna sandwiches.
But recognizing special occasions with food is not forbidden. "We are trying to help them rethink how to have a birthday celebration in a healthy way," Kinsey said.
Over time, healthier habits do evolve. Last month, Eberbach of Blue Cross attended a meeting where someone from outside the company brought two boxes of chocolate-covered doughnuts.
"No one ate them," she said. "I think the culture is changing. I see fewer sweets at meetings."
Jill's Healthy Snack
Makes 16 quarter-cup servings
1 cup unsalted roasted almonds
1 cup dried banana chips
1 cup dried cranberries or cherries (can use yellow raisins)
1/2 cup pomegranate seeds (if in season)
1/2 cup dark chocolate chips or dark chocolate M&Ms
1. Mix and put into small-portion bags or a bowl for sharing at the office.
From Jill Mascena, R.N.
Per serving: 65 calories; 2 grams protein; 7 grams carbohydrates; 4 grams sugar; 4 grams fat; no cholesterol; no sodium; 1 gram dietary fiber.
Apple Tuna Sandwiches
Makes 3 servings
2 six-ounce cans of tuna in water, drained
1 medium apple, chopped
1 celery stalk, peeled and chopped
1 teaspoon prepared mustard
1/2 cup lowfat vanilla yogurt
1 teaspoon honey
6 slices whole wheat bread
6 lettuce leaves
6 slices tomato
1. Combine tuna, apple, celery, mustard, yogurt, and honey.
2. Spread 1/2 cup on three slices of bread. Top each slice with lettuce, tomato, and remaining bread.
Recipe from Rutgers Cooperative Extension Family and Community Health Sciences Fact Sheet
Per serving: 359 calories; 37 grams protein; 38 grams carbohydrates; 15 grams sugar; 6 grams fat; 50 milligrams cholesterol; 377 milligrams sodium; 6 grams dietary fiber.