When I began working at my job in 2000 I noticed that although my weight didn't increase, my stomach had a permanently bloated look. Then I began having heart problems: palpitations, tachycardia. I went on betablockers for 2 years and gained weight like crazy. Finally I changed doctors and found out I get lowblood sugar when I eat carbs. When I cut out the sugar I no longer needed the betablockers.

My company, a biotech, prides itself on being the chocolate company we have huge glass candy jars all over on the xerox machines hallways etc.We also have Chinese, Mexican, and pizza and donuts and bagels put out everyday and chips in the afternoon. I have been fuming about the junkfood for a long time and finally told human resources my complaint last week. The only response I got is that hypoglycemia is something you're born with and the food you eat has no bearing on this. 5 other women that sit by me have been diagnosed with hypoglycemia, 2 diabetics and we had 2 heart attacks last year. Our company has 120 employees most between the ages of 25-45.

What do you think? Is it totally genetic and these health problems would have been there anyway? Or do you think it doesn't matter as we are all responsible for the food choices we make?

I had the same heart problems as you and was also on a beta blocker. Worked like a charm on the heart rate but I gained a ton of weight. I am also a true carb addict. Once I stopped eating the junk, I stopped needing the beta blocker. I think there are a very few people in this world that can eat anything they want and not have any adverse effects (not always just weight gain). Anyway, I don't think people are born with any of these conditions (hypoglycemia, type II diabetes), it's more that they may have a disposition towards developing them, they aren't preordained. We are responsible for what we eat but it sure would be hard to make the right choices when the wrong things are being provided for free.

There are people who don't need/crave the bad stuff so they sail through life without developing a bad relationship with food. My daughter is lucky to be one of those people. A few M&Ms, a half a piece of cake - all done. She's 18 and has been turning down sweets since she was a toddler. But it's not like she uses willpower to stop eating. She just doesn't care for the bad carbs. She has always been a salad person. Her one weakness is spaghetti and she only asks for it every two weeks or so.

She is in the minority however. Having high carb, high calorie junk around (tasty and free no less) is sure to lead most people into making poor choices. It's eat the junk or nothing where you are. Before I began lcing, the temptation would have been too much for me and I would have spent the day grazing. There is no reason that they can't offer some healthy alternatives. It may be hard to store fresh veggies but even some small apples/clementines and some cheese sticks would be a big improvement. Maybe you should let them know about the effects the transfats they are pumping into their employees may have on their workforce in the future. That may scare them enough to offer some healthy foods.

Are your human resources people physicians? If not, they who are they to tell you what you are or are not born with! If they are an equal opportunity employer and offer all of the transfat and carb laden goodies free every day, then they should be equally offering low carb choices for those who choose to eat in a healthier manner. Have they even bothered to find out appropriate foods for hypo- and hyperglycemic folks to consume? Or are they just a bunch of skinny minny know it alls who put out what THEY favor as face stuffers?

shortstuff

A person may be born with a tendency to these disorders, but diet plays a major role!

It's certainly not helping to have all the free stuff around, but I'm guessing no-one's holding a gun to heads to make the employees eat it, and HR is probably not inspecting brief cases at the door to make sure employees aren't bringing in apples and salads.

Forget HR. That's not going to work. Make friends with the owner's wife and share your concerns with her (sexist assumption here; works the other way if that's the case). Or whomever the caring spouse of the most senior fat person is. As the employees age (which is happening in my company), you'll see more and more interest in better health, but it will come from the older employees, not HR.

I think many of these conditions are possible for us all, and hence genetic in a way. But the switches are turned on or off by conditions such as diet and weight.

fit- I am so amazed this happened to someone else. I guess the betablockers mixed with high insulin levels will make ya fat. Gosh your daughter is so blessed to not your sweet tooth gene.

shortstuff- you made me laugh, but you're right! They should be equal oppurtunity employers. I hadn't even thought about all the transfats in the stuff. There was a study done that showed that employees given free food were happier with their jobs stayed longer etc so my company started the food thing. To me its the opposite- I can't wait to get away from the carbs. For me the problem is that I'm really bored and often have nothing to do all day at work. Unfortunately part of my pay is in stock options and the stock price is in the basement at the moment.

pf-I thought these disorders must have some relationship to diet. I know I was a carb addict before I worked here but I didn't have the intense physical symptoms, may be my age also. I started working here at 38.

cs- I love your strategy ideas. There are plenty of overweight people here. Its like the freshman 10, but most put on about 20 pounds when they start working here. We have hazardous labels for our chemicals, for a long time I've wanted to put them on the candy jars.

thanks everyone for your feedback, sometimes I feel a freak getting uptight about the high carb levels in the environment.

Most American offices are junk-food-laden enough without a formal "free food at work" policy, especially this time of year. Candy and treats are everywhere. Most people that I know think that Atkins=heart attack, but everyone I know agrees that a diet of M&Ms and soda is bad for you. You should have some common ground with your co-workers there.

You have a legitimate complaint and I think it's worth talking to HR and the owner/CEO about it (again). HR is usually where workplace wellness campaigns begin. Many companies have formal wellness programs with everything from weight-loss plans to casual lunchtime seminars on health issues. It's a hot trend. Most businesses understand that healthy employees are happier, more productive, and keep costs down (particularly health insurance costs).

If you go in there guns blazing, implying that your hypoglycemia is the company's fault (even though it may be, I don't know), and throwing around terms like "equal opportunity employer," you're going to put HR on the defensive and probably won't get very far. An Equal Opportunity Employer is one who does not discriminate in hiring, promotion, or discipline decisions based on an employee's legally protected status, like race or gender. It has nothing to do with providing vegetables alongside the cookie tray.

(However, if you want to scare them into action with legal terms, you may very well have an argument under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), particularly if you band together with your diabetic co-workers. Let me know if you'd like to hear more on this.)

I think your best bet is a plea for a healthier work environment. Talk about the welfare of everyone and how it will help the company's bottom line. I know that, when I started Atkins, I was amazed at the number of times a day I turned down sweets in the office. I felt like I said "no" all day long. It really scared me when I realized that normally I would have said "yes" every time! Having the stuff around all day causes people to eat more than they would otherwise, it's just a fact.

Thanks,
Rosa

here is my take....

I would go to the HR dept and ask them if they might be able to provide some Low carb or healthy choices ... say its for you and the other people that cant take the sugery stuff. But i would not tell them to stop the sweets all together cause first off it will make you sound like a B***h and it will make those emploies who do want the sweets and who have no problem bitter toward you.

I owuld simple ask for low suger snacks and if the say no .... well sorry but no one is forcing you to eat them.

We need to take charge of our lives and walk by the sweets, its our lives and our bodies and we are responcible for what we put in our bodies.

sorry if this makes me sound mean but i am tired of people expecting the rest of the world to be responcible for our lives except us.

Another tactic:

Does your employer offer health insurance? If they do, I'd be willing to bet that they're interested in keeping down health care costs and we all know that they're skyrocketing these days.
Take the approach of "while these foods may taste good and I'm sure they're popular, it's well known that they are not healthy foods for anyone to be eating on a regular basis (give copies of studies regarding transfats and junk food consumption, if possible)". You could also counter their "hypoglycemia is something you're born with" argument (false) with web articles on how people do actually get it along with the fact that often hypoglycemia becomes diabetes if left untreated for too long and I'm sure they're aware of the health costs involved in caring for diabetics (and if they aren't, you might want to provide some statistics along those lines as well).
If they're interested in controlling costs, it's in their best interest to provide snacks that don't promote health problems in their employees or provoke already existing problems. I'd be willing to bet that you also have at least a couple (if not several) diabetics in your office and those snacks for the most part aren't appropriate for them, either.
Of course, another option, is to organize a boycott of said treats if you think you can convince enough people to do it to get their attention.

Rosa I think you are right. Because I feel so strongly about the dangers of overcarbing I probably came across too agressive. It would be great to have a healthier workplace. We have a free gym membership. Maybe there is power in numbers. Just about all the women say they hate the candy, most of the thin guys seem to not care about it, they say they rarely eat it.


Petcrazed- That is a good idea, asking for LC products. I don't think your mean at all, its just when I'm not in deep ketosis, I can't seem to stop eating sweets, its like a true addiction because I don't even enjoy them anymore. I don't know what is wrong with me.

Lisa - that is a very good idea, money does talk. Its really heart-breaking to me, the diabetics(type 2) are so young. One of them brought banana bread today. She was so proud that she had made it with 1/2 the amount of sugar you usually use. We really do need some education here.

Well, you all have given me some great ideas. Now I see my approach was way too emotional and personal.