June 2017 - SunDun Vending Blog

Healthy Snacks in Rockville, MD

Choices. Whether it’s a conscious decision or not, everyone is faced with multiple choices every day. A University of Nebraska at Kearney (UNK) graduate student helped her fellow classmates and professors by making the choice to snack healthy easier. As part of her thesis, she set out to learn if students and faculty would purchase healthy vending machine options. After taste testing one of the three snacks—licorice, chocolate chip cookies, or chili cheese flavored pop chips—each tester was asked if they would buy the item if it were available in one of the university’s vending machines. The positive outcome led UNK to replace some of the previous vending choices with healthier options.

Regardless of an individual’s age, eating healthy is important. Not only does a healthy diet impact physical health, but it also affects a Rockville, MD individual’s ability to be productive and produce quality work. Easy access to healthy snacks at work makes choosing healthy snacks easier. Unfortunately, access to healthy snacks at work isn’t always simple. To change that, it is important to involve everyone in the process including coworkers and bosses when deciding how to increase the amount and types of nutritious snacks and beverages available.

For example, break room decision makers should understand that Rockville, MD consumers consider the following when choosing a snack:

quality and type of ingredients
origin of ingredients
how a brand contributes to society
types of flavors and experiences

Popular snacks that fall into at least one of the above categories include beef jerky, popcorn, greek yogurt, roasted seaweed, string cheese, bean chips, vegetable chips, fruit or vegetable crisps, and nuts. And don’t forget to offer individually packaged snacks. It helps snackers with portion control.

Healthy Snacks in Rockville, MD But will offering more healthy choices really have a positive impact? According to recent research in the British Journal of Health Psychology, the answer is yes. As part of the study, participants recorded their food consumption, mood, and behaviors during a 13-day period. Researchers examined how food choices impacted daily experiences and found that the more fruits and vegetables participants consumed, the happier, more engaged, and more creative the participants tended to be. Additionally, a separate review of 30 publications in Perspectives in Public Health found that when there were well thought out and efficiently implemented diet-related interventions in the workplace, productivity increased by 1%-2%.

If your Rockville, MD organization doesn’t offer snacks or beverages in the office break room or is looking to switch from traditional vending snacks and beverages to healthy ones, we can help. By switching to healthy options, the dilemma of making a healthy choice is removed. For more information about how to make the switch, contact SunDun Office Refreshments at 800.466.2731.

Coffee seems to be transforming its reputation. It’s no longer seen as the harmful beverage it once was. Just this year, the International Journal of Cancer published the results of a study examining “the effect of Italian-style coffee consumption on prostate cancer risk” in almost 7,000 men in the Molise region of Italy (Pounis, et al., 2017, p. 72). The researchers determined that the men who consumed more than three cups of Italian-style coffee per day had a 53 percent lower risk of developing prostate cancer than those who drank zero to two cups per day. That is great news!

But, wait a minute—what is Italian-style coffee? Is it the same as American coffee? Turns out, it isn’t. Italian-style coffee is prepared in high-pressure hot water (over 1600 degrees Fahrenheit) without using filters. Most Columbia, MD employees know it as espresso, not coffee.

This isn’t to say that coffee doesn’t have any health benefits. In fact, the results of two studies that were published in 2016 show that coffee does more than offer an energy boost and decrease the likelihood of developing type 2 diabetes, Parkinson’s disease, and dementia. The International Agency for Research on Cancer determined, after reviewing 1000 previously completed studies, that coffee cannot be classified as a cause of cancer anymore. At the same time, a different group of researchers was performing a comprehensive analysis of the relationship between coffee and different cancer types. They found that coffee intake was associated with reduced risk of oral, pharynx, liver, colon, prostate, endometrial cancer, and melanoma. More good news.

Coffee in Columbia, MD

There is one concern, however, that researchers discovered while studying coffee. Drinking hot or very hot beverages, whether coffee, tea, or something else, can contribute to an increased risk of esophageal cancer or cancer of the esophagus when compared to lower temperature beverages. To help avoid that, remember to give your coffee a few minutes to cool before drinking it. Columbia, MD consumers also have a variety of cold beverages such as iced tea or water to choose from if they are looking for something at a lower temperature.

With such a variety of benefits and coffee’s improved reputation, it’s time to consider either updating your current Columbia, MD office coffee service or offering a new benefit to your employees—the gourmet coffeehouse experience in your break room. Uniquely sourced and locally roasted beans are the foundation for a great cup of coffee and a relaxing mid-afternoon break. To learn more, contact SunDun Office Refreshments at 800.466.2731 for more information.

Reference:

Pounis, G., Tabolacci, C., Costanzo, S., Cordella, M., Bonaccio, M., Rago, L., D’Arcangelo, D., Castelnuovo, A. F., Gaetano, G., Donati, M. B., Iacoviello, L., & Facchiano, F. (2017). Reduction by coffee consumption of prostate cancer risk: Evidence from the Moli-sani cohort and cellular models. International Journal of Cancer, 141(1), 72–82. DOI: 10.1002/ijc.30720

Healthy Snacks in Rockville, MD Break Rooms

Benefits for Columbia, MD Coffee Drinkers

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