Katie Waxman

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.   

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.

Have you ever wondered who purchases bottled water? As it turns out, just about everyone does. According to the International Bottled Water Association (IBWA) and the Beverage Marketing Corporation (BMS), “Americans are drinking more bottled water than any other packaged beverage” for the first time in American history. A recent Harris poll conducted for the IBWA found that 86 percent of people polled purchase bottled water. Additionally, the BMS recently released numbers for 2016 bottled water sales. They found that there was a 10 percent increase in sales and an 8.6 percent increase in bottled water consumption. Now, that’s a lot of bottled water.

So, what makes bottled water so popular? The answer depends on who you talk to. Bottled water offers many benefits and has the potential to meet a wide variety of Fairfax, VA consumer needs. The following are just a few of the features that have made bottled water popular.

Bottled water is versatile.

• It can be consumed at any time of the day.
• Water mixes well with many other types of beverages.
• You can drink it cold or hot.
• It can be found with carbonation or without, and flavored or plain.

Bottled water is healthy.

• It contains zero calories.
• It keeps the body hydrated.
• It can improve one’s mood and focus.
• It can help replenish lost electrolytes.

Bottled water is portable.

• It is convenient when one is on-the-go.
• It is easy to carry it with you.
• Bottled water is available in many locations.
• Disposal of the bottle is relatively simple.

Bottled water is safe.

• It is regulated as a food product by the Food & Drug Administration.
• Bottled water has a long shelf life.
• An extra supply should be kept for an emergency or disaster situation.
• It can help prevent illness when traveling outside of the U.S.

With the great demand for bottled water, it is important to make sure that your Fairfax, VA employees have access to a variety of bottled water choices during their work day. Not only will you help your employees remain hydrated during the day but their mood and focus are likely to improve if they are hydrated. A large selection of low or no sugar, flavored carbonated waters can also be a refreshing treat during a work break.

What bottled water options do you offer in your office break room? SunDun Office Refreshments can help you determine the best combination of flat and carbonated bottled waters as well as other beverages to offer in your office break room. To learn more, contact us at 800.466.2731.

Is it healthy, not so healthy, or somewhere in between? If it’s not so healthy, you are part of a large number of Americans who feel that their diet is unhealthy. Recent research by Mintel, a market intelligence agency, found that “less than half (42 percent) of Americans consider their diet to be healthy.” Yikes!

While negative dietary influences vary greatly from person to person, there is one thing that impacts the majority of Alexandria, VA consumers—being able to determine the validity of health-related claims on food packaging. As a consumer, how can you combat the uncertainty that often comes with reading food packaging?

Before looking at the packaging issue, it is important to understand what a food or health-related claim is. The U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) describes a health claim as “a relationship between a food substance (a food, food component, or dietary supplement ingredient), and reduced risk of a disease or health-related condition.” An example of an FDA-approved health claim that explains the benefit of calcium on the risk of osteoporosis is, “Adequate calcium throughout life, as part of a well-balanced diet, may reduce the risk of osteoporosis.” For a manufacturer to be able to include this claim on the packaging of one of their products, the product must meet a list of specific requirements.

Given that it is often difficult to know those requirements while reading different packaging, the nutrition label and ingredient list are a great resource. Ingredient lists and nutrition labels often contain a large amount of information. To better understand that information, here are a few strategies for reading them.

Nutrition Labels

• Determine how big or small the serving size is for each packaged item. Often the serving size is different than the amount of food or drink in the package. To correctly understand the other information on the nutrition label, knowing the correct serving size is key.
• Understand that the “percentage daily value” listed on the nutrition label is not the same for everyone. Most nutrition labels are based on a 2000 calorie per day diet. If you are taller or shorter or male or female or 17 or 39 or 82 or super active or a couch potato, it is likely that your caloric needs are different. Use the amount listed, 2000 calories per day, and adjust it up or down based on your own needs.
• Pay special attention to the amount of sugar, unhealthy fats, and sodium that are in a serving as those are ingredients that many individuals need to limit.

Ingredient Lists

• Look for recognizable ingredients. If it is an item that you have never heard of or cannot pronounce, look it up or ask someone what it is.
• Consider which ingredients are listed first or early in the list of ingredients. The earlier the ingredient is listed, the larger the amount is of that ingredient.
• If choosing a food that doesn’t come in a labeled package such as fruits or vegetables isn’t an option, choose products that have shorter ingredient lists. (See previous tip)

Now that you are armed with a few strategies for understanding the information on packaged foods and beverages, you are ready to head out and make healthy snack and beverage choices.

We at SunDun Office Refreshments would like to help make things a little easier for everyone by offering a selection of snacks and beverages in your Alexandria, VA office break room. For more information about our products and service options, call us at 800.466.2731.

What are the ingredients in your favorite vending machine snack or beverage? Do you know? If you do, you belong to a growing group of consumers who not only know which ingredients are in their food but also know the number of ingredients. According to Andrew Mandyz, Director of Strategic Insights at Nielsen, “There’s a shift in how people are thinking about ‘better for you.’ People are looking for back-to-basics, simpler ingredients.”

Ingredient Labels

Seeing the recipe for your snack or beverage would be the best way to learn about what is in it, and how much of each thing was used. But since that is rarely an option, there is another way for McLean, VA consumers to learn about what is in their food and drink—by reading ingredient labels. Ingredients are listed in a very specific order. The largest ingredient is listed first, followed by each ingredient until the smallest ingredient. For example, a ready-to-drink cold tea that lists the ingredients tea (water, tea), sugar, and lemon is letting the consumer know that there is more tea than sugar, and more sugar than lemon in the beverage. Nielsen found that “about 61 percent [of consumers] said that the shorter the ingredients’ list, the healthier the product.”

Online Resources

In addition to reading ingredient labels, consumers are researching health information online. Mandzy found that the number of consumers who went online for information went from 48% in 2014 up to 68% in 2016, a 20% increase. With the large amount of health information available online, and more McLean, VA consumers using the internet, it is important to know how to determine if a website contains reliable information. Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center offers some tips:

• Don’t search the entire Internet. Start with the Johns Hopkins Medicine Health Library [or other hospital website] or MedlinePlus.gov.
• Evaluate commercial (“dot com”) sites carefully for bias and conflict of interest.
• Check to see if the information is current (less than three years old).
• Look for the credentials of the author (i.e. doctor, nurse, psychologist) to make sure the information is written by a health professional.

Technology as a Tool

Using technology to track health-related activities and numbers are also on the rise. There are apps that are worn during activities such as running or walking, ones that track the number of hours slept and the quality of sleep, ones that track what an individual has eaten and count calories, and others that track heart health or healthy habits. With so many apps available, it can be challenging to find one that meets a McLean, VA user’s needs. Harvard Health Publications recommends several things to consider when looking for the right app.

• Have realistic expectations of the technology and watch out for unrealistic claims.
• Read reviews. Try out a few different ones.
• Read the fine print.
• Ask for recommendations.
• Look for ones “sponsored or created by established health advocacy groups, medical organizations, or universities”

Reading ingredient labels, researching health information and monitoring one’s own health-related activities are just a few of the many ways that consumers can become more knowledgeable. Sharon Allison-Ottey, MD and health educator, recently expressed that “the overall trend of a more-educated consumer is excellent” especially when it comes to a person’s diet. Which snack and beverage ingredients do your consumers want to see in their McLean, VA healthy vending machines?

Contact SunDun Office Refreshments at 800.466.2731 to learn more about our vending options.

If your New Year’s resolution was to lose weight and/or eat healthier, keep your commitment to yourself and choose “bubbly” sparkling bottled water instead of champagne or soda for your Valentine’s Day celebration.

Why make sparkling water your beverage of choice in 2017?

• It’s Healthier – Many leading brands, such as LaCroix, don’t have any calories, sweeteners, sodium or anything artificial.
• It’s Cheaper – With many cities and counties across the country imposing extra taxes on sugar-sweetened beverages, it’s better for your budget to stay away from sodas.
• It’s Trending – According to the Wall Street Journal’s article LaCroix Bubbles Up in Water Brand Competition, sparkling water consumption grew 26% from 2015-2016. And according to an article from Huffington Post, Sparkling Water is the New Soda, between 2009 and 2014, the volume of carbonated bottled water sold in the U.S. increased by 56.4%.
• It’s Diverse – Sparkling water offers a large variety of flavors not commonly found in soda. Think black cherry dragon fruit, orange grapefruit, and kiwi watermelon.

This year as you work to improve your own drinking habits don’t forget to help your Washington D.C. employees do the same.

Whether you offer traditional vending or healthy vending benefits to your employees, your local vendor can stock your healthy break room with sparkling water options.

Some of our favorites include:

ICE – Started in the early 1990s in the Pacific Northwest, the ICE line now includes sparkling teas and lemonades in addition to their twelve succulent varieties of sparkling water.

Dasani Sparkling – All 6 varieties of Dasani Sparkling water are unsweetened and have no artificial flavor. They also are juice free.

LaCroix – Originating in the 1980s LaCroix has made a serious comeback complete with a whole new look. Today they are easily the leading name in sparkling water.

For more sparkling water options call SunDun Office Refreshments at 800.466.2731 today. We’ll be happy to add some healthy carbonated beverages to your Washington D.C. energy star rated vending machines with your next refill.