A new report from Trust for America’s Health and Robert Wood Johnson Foundation indicates that obesity rates rose for the second consecutive year in twenty-four (24) states and astoundingly NO states experienced a decrease in their obesity rates.

Here are a few insights to consider:
• More than 25% of adults are obese in 28 states.
• More than 20% of adults are obese in every state except for Colorado.
• In 1980 the national average of obese adults was 15%. Today it is estimated that 66% of American adults are overweight or obese.
• It is estimated that 23 million children are overweight or obese.

These statistics are frightening when you consider the fact that obesity is a trigger for many chronic health issues that plague our health system and continue to contribute to the escalating costs of chronic and multi-disease state care. Even more startling is the fact that the report found that many of the promising policies that have emerged to promote physical activity and good nutrition are not being adopted or implemented for a variety of reasons.

While organizations have typically used a disease management approach to try to manage and control weight of their employees and members, there is a company called Tangerine Wellness , has very compelling success stories about their ability to help people lose weight and keep it off. Recognizing that obesity is an issue that leads to many other health issues, Tangerine Wellness has used some basic principles of social networking, competition and long-term incentives to drive some amazing results for people who are overweight. Their success has been steeped in the understanding that losing weight is hard, but keeping it off over a long period of time can be even more difficult. Through the use of intermittent rewards and effective communication that recognizes participants when they hit key milestones, Tangerine has produced ROI numbers upward of 5% and has achieved participation and engagement rates averaging between 60% to 80%.

When considering programs where the health issue is as pervasive and serious as obesity, corporations may want to consider rewarding on outcomes over a 2 to 3 year period rather than soley on participation in a weight management program. Outcomes-based incentive programs do require more focus on HIPAA criteria however, I believe the ROI that companies like Tangerine have been able to deliver more than justify the investment in a robust outcomes-based incentive strategy.

In previous posts, I’ve mentioned briefly about Maritz’ “whole-brained” approach to implementing successful wellness programs. Just to reiterate, what I mean by “whole-brained” is essentially rewiring the brain to activate new behaviors and sustain them long term. At Maritz, we apply the focus, repetition and positive reinforcement model to ensure the wellness program’s success. More specifically:

Focus: the act of paying attention, which creates chemical and physical changes in the brain.

Repetition: repeated, purposeful and focused attention, which leads to long-lasting personal evolution or change.

Positive reinforcement: people receive positive feedback; it creates a synapse in the brain, encouraging the behavior to continue.

When companies take a whole-brained approach to health and wellness incentives and answer the five integral questions – what do you want me to do, why is it important, how do I do it, what’s in it for me, and how am I doing – successful health and productivity programs becomes a continuous cycle resulting in optimum member participation and, more importantly, healthier members.