Having high cholesterol is known to increase someone’s risk of cardiovascular diseases, including serious health issues like strokes and heart attacks – things that would have a clear impact in terms of lost working days, sickness absence, business continuity and even operational resilience.
In short, cholesterol costs - and the British Heart Foundation estimates those costs for the wider UK economy are adding up to something like £15.8bn a year.
But more than that, cholesterol levels are a good indicator for someone’s overall health –so if you’re invested in the health and wellbeing of your people, you should be invested in their cholesterol.
The best ways to control or lower cholesterol includes all the things we’re always being told we should do for our health - like reducing smoking and alcohol intake, eating healthily and exercising regularly. Knowing their numbers could help your people make healthier choices, and stay fighting (and working) fit.
With an Equipsme plan, your staff that you have included on Level 2 or Level 1 cover (or have chosen themselves to upgrade to Level 2 or Level 1) will have access to an annual cholesterol test through our partners Thriva. It’s a simple finger prick test that can be done at home and put in the post, so it’s easy for people to fit it in to their busy lives.
4 ways to show your staff you care about cholesterol:
1. Make cholesterol your health focus in October
October is National Cholesterol Month, and a great excuse to start talking about cholesterol and heart health.
2. Create a cholesterol challenge
When it comes to cholesterol, small lifestyle changes can make a huge difference, from using the stairs instead of the lift, to swapping out full-fat milk for skimmed. Challenge your people to make one healthy habit – with Heart UK’s Habit Tracker.
3. Use our cholesterol articles on your intranet or newsletter
We’ve got member-focussed cholesterol articles you can use in your own communications – including a list of the small everyday things people can do to improve their cholesterol levels.
4. Remind people about their Equipsme plan, and how to access our tests
Once they’ve got their Equipsme plan in place, people often forget how much it can do for them! Send out a reminder that they can get their cholesterol checked each year through our health-check partners Thriva. Depending on the plan level, they might have a voucher towards the test, or get it free as part of their package. All they need to do is log in to their Equipsme portal, click on the Health-Checks icon, and request their Thriva pack.
