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Our Point of View
Rounding Up the War on Cancer
On September 28, 2016, The Economist hosted its second annual “War on Cancer” event in Boston, Massachusetts. The one-day meeting featured influential speakers, including Greg Simon, the Executive Director of the Cancer Moonshot Taskforce; Kyu Rhee, the Chief Health Officer at IBM; and Howard Krein, the Chief Medical Officer at StartUp Health. The World Health...Gillian Christie | Oct 7, 2016
alcohol, cancer, Cancer Moonshot Taskforce, CDC, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Congressional Budget Office, exercise, healthy diet, IBM, StartUp Health, The Economist, tobacco use, war on cancer, weight, World Health Organization
Our Point of View
Improving the Health of Canadians: Vitality Enters Canada with Manulife
In 1946, the World Health Organization’s (WHO) Constitution outlined a comprehensive definition of health as: “Health is a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.” This definition of health was later espoused by Canada’s former Minister of Health and Welfare, Marc Lalonde, in 1974. His...Gillian Christie | Oct 4, 2016
Canada, chronic disease, chronic disease prevention, health promotion, Manulife Vitality, Marc Lalonde, mental health, Ottawa Charter, physical health, social well-being, technology, World Health Organization
Our Point of View
Protecting Heart Health on World Heart Day
Today is World Heart Day 2016, an annual event established to educate people on heart disease and stroke. Heart disease and stroke are the world’s leading causes of death, claiming 17.3 million lives each year. A few simple steps – moving more, eating healthier, cutting down on alcohol, not or stopping smoking, and adhering to...Cary Conway | Sep 29, 2016
alcohol use, employers, medication adherence, Nutrition, physical activity, tobacco use, workplace health, World Heart Day, World Heart Federation
Our Point of View
Accelerating Cancer Prevention
The World Health Organization estimates that the number of new cancer cases will rise by 70% over the next two decades. While the dialogue on cancer is too often on treatment, about a third of cancer deaths are due to the five leading behavioral and dietary risks: high body mass index, low fruit and vegetable...Derek Yach & Gillian Christie | Sep 22, 2016
alcohol, alcohol use, cancer, healthy diet, physical activity, war on cancer, World Health Organization
Our Point of View
Apple’s Quiet Acquisition of Gliimpse
It has emerged that Apple quietly acquired Gliimpse earlier this year. Founded in 2013, Gliimpse is a personal health data start-up with a digital platform that enables the collection, personalization, and sharing of images of an individual’s health data within the United States. The platform is based on an artificial intelligence engine with capabilities to...Gillian Christie | Aug 30, 2016
Apple, CareKit, data, data protection, digital health, ELSI, Gliimpse, Guidelines for Personalized Health Technology, HealthKit, personalized technology, privacy, ResearchKit, security, transparency, wearable technology, wearables
Our Point of View
Communicating Non-communicable Diseases: From 3Four50 to 4Four60
In 2003, the Oxford Health Alliance (OHA) proposed 3Four50 to effectively communicate the prevention of non-communicable diseases (NCDs). The idea was simple: three risk factors (unhealthy diet, physical inactivity, and tobacco use) led to four NCDs (cardiovascular disease, diabetes, chronic lung diseases, and certain cancers), which contribute to more than 50% of global deaths. Vitality’s...Cheryl Jacobs & Gillian Christie | Aug 25, 2016
3Four50, 4Four60, alcohol, alcohol use, Oxford Health Alliance, physical inactivity, tobacco use, unhealthy diet
Impact, Our Point of View
Vitality walks the walk … and not just to be active!
The Global Centre for Healthy Workplaces recently hosted the 4th Global Healthy Workplace Awards & Summit on June 7 at American University in Washington, DC. Dr. Derek Yach, Vitality’s Chief Health Officer, was slated to present the keynote – but that’s not the only reason we were psyched to attend. Months earlier we applied for...Jonathan Dugas | Jun 28, 2016
american university, global centre for healthy workplaces, healthy workspaces, monash university, Unilever, well-being, workplace health
Our Point of View
Wearables Weekly
Wearables Weekly Brought to you by Sarah Kunkle and Gillian Christie, Wearables Weekly is a weekly newsletter highlighting noteworthy stories and leading insights into wearable tracking devices and other personalized health technologies. Please contact gchristie@thevitalitygroup.com if you are interested in receiving Wearables Weekly every Monday morning in your inbox. Latest Newsletter - Wearables Weekly: June 20,...Gillian Christie and Sarah Kunkle | Jun 20, 2016
health technology, innovative technology, personalized health technology, technology, wearables
Our Point of View
Caring for Mother Earth: The link between planetary health and population health
World Environment Day is an opportunity to reflect on the mounting evidence on the reciprocal relationship between the health of our global agricultural system and population health, which makes it clear that we cannot continue to neglect global planetary health. A long-term vision of healthy and productive populations requires re-envisioning how we sustainably grow, deliver,...Gabriela Seplovich | Jun 5, 2016
climate change, environment, Health, planetary health, president obama, Rockefeller Foundation, The Lancet, world environment day
Our Point of View
May 31 is World NO Tobacco Day – Today!
In 1998, Dr. Gro Harlem Brundtland was appointed as Director General (DG) of the World Health Organization (WHO). The Tobacco Free Initiative (TFI) was one of two early “pathfinder projects” initiated by Brundtland, along with Roll Back Malaria. TFI was tasked with addressing the drivers of a growing disease burden focused on non-communicable disease (NCDs),...Derek Yach & Gillian Christie | May 31, 2016
#NoTobacco, FCTC, Gro Harlem Brundtland, Margaret Chan, TFI, Tobacco, tobacco control, tobacco free initiative, tobacco products, WHO, World Health Assembly, World Health Organization, world no tobacco day
