Is Working Remotely Bad for Your Health?

On By SupremeCmdrIn Business Trends, Mental Health, Question of The Day, Remote Underwriting, Success, Survival strategies, Working From HomeLeave a comment

On the other hand, research from Cornell University finds that remote workers are at greater risk for feeling personally and professionally isolated than their in-office colleagues. Social isolation has been associated with significant increases in both mortality risk and risk for a heart attack or stroke. More research had tied social isolation to depression and problems sleeping.

Nice article from Time online.  Read it here.

I’ve been working from home since 2006.  I totally get the social isolation aspect.

Fortunately the social isolation negatives are mitigated by my commute.

It takes me less than a minute after leaving the office to grab a beer from the fridge.

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Drink More Coffee Live Longer? (not really)

On By SupremeCmdrIn Diet and Disease, NutritionLeave a comment

Read this article or watch the video before you start knocking down a dozen cups of Joe to prolong your life.

if one observes a benefit in a population associated with consuming a food or beverage, and the benefit is not mediated by the active ingredient in that food or beverage, the finding is likely due to unmeasured confounding.  In other words, I think coffee is in the same camp as red wine: the observed benefits are likely due more to the type of person who drinks it than what’s actually in the drink.

 

Criminal prosecution for violating HIPAA: an emerging threat to health care professionals

On By SupremeCmdrIn ManagementLeave a comment

The penalties for criminal violations of HIPAA are substantial — generally a fine of up to $50,000 and up to one year in prison. A violation of HIPAA committed under false pretenses, such as disclosing a patient’s information for a reason the provider knows to be untrue (such disclosing a patient’s protected health information on the premise that the patient is an imminent threat to the public when the provider knows this to be false), can carry a fine of up to $100,000 and imprisonment for up to five years.

A gentle reminder for those of us in the financial services industry, especially life underwriters who deal with protected health data on a daily basis.

MUST READ ARTICLE.

Many older adults are deficient in vitamin B12 and folate

On By SupremeCmdrIn Diet and Disease, Nutrition, older ageLeave a comment

Key findings:

  • One in eight adults over 50 were low to deficient in vitamin B12 while one in seven were low to deficient in folate

  • The prevalence of low or deficient folate increased with age, from 14% among those aged 50-60 years to 23% among people over 80 years old. Low folate status was also more common in smokers, the obese, and those who lived alone

  • Low or deficient vitamin B12 was more common in smokers (14%), people who lived alone (14.3%) and those from lower socio-economic backgrounds (13%)

  • Use of both vitamin B12 and folic acid supplementation was low, with higher rates among women than men but less than 4% overall taking supplements of either vitamin

Read the source article here.

Vegetarian or ‘Flexitarian’ Diet Benefits Waistline and Pocket

On By SupremeCmdrIn Diet and Disease, Foodborne Illness, Lifestyle Underwriting, NutritionLeave a comment

Adopting a vegetarian or semi-vegetarian diet to lose weight and improve health may not be as onerous as is typically assumed, as people can experience health benefits even if they only partially switch to plant-based foods. In addition, the diets may cost less than other healthy diets, suggests new research presented here at the European Congress on Obesity (ECO) 2018.

Access the full article here.

The comments are the best part of this article.

Risk of Type 2 Diabetes Among Lesbian, Bisexual, and Heterosexual Women: Findings From the Nurses’ Health Study II

On By SupremeCmdrIn diabetes, underwritingLeave a comment

CONCLUSIONS Findings indicate that LB women develop type 2 diabetes at younger ages than heterosexual women. Higher BMI in LB women is an important contributor to this disparity. Public health and clinical efforts to prevent, detect, and manage obesity and type 2 diabetes among LB women are warranted.

Source article here.