AMERICAN FEDERATION OF TEACHERS FOR WELLNESS

WHEREAS, the American Federation of Teachers' goal is to educate, encourage and help support its members to recognize the leading causes of death and disability in the United States. Chronic diseases and conditions such as heart disease, stroke, cancer, diabetes, obesity and arthritis—are among the most common and costly of all health problems that can be prevented or reversed by proper nutrition, daily exercise and behavior modification; and

WHEREAS, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data show:

•  2012—117 million people (about half of all adults) have one or more chronic health conditions, and one of four adults has two or more chronic health conditions;
• 2010—Seven of the top 10 causes of death were chronic diseases; heart disease and cancer together accounted for nearly 48 percent of all deaths;
• 2009-10—Obesity affected more than one-third of adults, or about 78 million people; and nearly one of five youths (age 2-19 years) was obese;
• The most common cause of disability is arthritis, affecting 53 million adults diagnosed;
• Diabetes is the leading cause of kidney failure, lower-limb amputations not caused by injury and new cases of blindness among adults:

RESOLVED, that the American Federation of Teachers hereby supports awareness and intervention for its members and their families and will invest in helping to change unhealthy risk behaviors. Four of these health risk behaviors—lack of exercise or physical activity, poor nutrition, tobacco use and drinking too much alcohol—cause much of the illness, suffering and early death related to chronic diseases and conditions. These types of changes can improve the quality of life for AFT members by educating through health promotions that support the concepts of wellness; and

RESOLVED, that the AFT, in valuing its members, hereby places great importance on their health and welfare and commits to partnering with locals for wellness to battle the numerous chronic diseases, reduce their occurrences, reduce health benefits costs and promote a healthy workforce; and support locals in demanding that employers provide a healthy workplace.