Failed Economy Tomorrow = Poor Workplace Health Today

Not surprisingly, our poor diet, lack of exercise and smoking are all contributing to our nation's downfall in the health arena.

And new report claims that this very failure is also what's made our economy sputter.  According to a story by Derek Yach, "There is a direct link between the health of the U.S. workforce and the overall wellbeing of the U.S. economy."

Yach notes that 50% of Americans are living with at least one chronic disease, and this costs the healthcare system dearly, while affecting productivity, because when you're sick, you take a sick day.  And if a lot of you are sick a lot, well, that could very well hurt your company's bottom line.

Workplace health has a big effect on economic productivity and "critical to reducing the national debt."

We're falling behind other countries in this way, Yach writes, adding that Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development Countries (OECD) competitors are leaving us in the dust. 

The U.S. falls at the bottom 20%, compared to the 34 OECD countries for

  • ischemic heart diseases (rank: 27)
  • lung cancer (28)
  • COPD (32)
  •  diabetes (31)
  • cardiomyopathy (31)
  • chronic kidney disease (31)
  • hypertensive heart disease (27)

Our poor health today could mean that we're going to sink even lower economically.


Poorer health today could translate into lower productivity tomorrow.

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