As the economy hums along, we are sharing the roads with more trucks than ever before.

Unfortunately, many people do not exercise the extreme caution required when driving around 18-wheelers, container trucks and buses. And if there is an accident, due to their sheer size and weight, they can crush a passenger vehicle, seriously injuring or killing the occupants. 
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One of the biggest mistakes people make in planning their health and life coverage is assuming they'll never need long-term care services, or that if they do need these services, they will pay for them with their savings. 

And many people shy away from long-term care insurance because they worry about premium hikes or the fact that if they don't use the coverage, they never benefit from their premium payments. But now there is a policy that melds long-term care insurance with life insurance.
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A new year brings new issues for HR professionals to contend with. Some challenges are similar to previous years (overtime uncertainty), while others are more unique and complicated (legal marijuana and employment). Despite inherent difficulties, staying tuned in to these six trends can keep you ahead of the game in 2019. Ignoring them will only put you behind.
 
Below are the top trends to monitor in the coming months.

While employers try to ensure their employees are provided a safe workplace by reducing the chances of accidents and injuries, it's important not to overlook employee stress. 
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Too much stress or too many responsibilities can greatly increase employees’ chances of not only burnout, but also making costly mistakes. A worse-case scenario is that if they are engaged in more labor-intensive occupations, too much stress can lead to accidents.

There are about 10 million adults over the age of 50 in the United States who provide care for their aging parents. During the past 15 years, the number of adult children providing primary financial or personal care for their parents has increased more than three times. About 25 percent of all adult children in the country today are the primary care providers for their parents. The same number is almost equal to the number of non-working adult children who help their parents.

​The Cost of Caregiving
These caregivers are also planning for their own retirement, and the task of being a primary caregiver can negatively affect saving efforts. A study from MetLife looked at the impact of caregiving on adult children and their future financial status.
 
According to MetLife's survey, the level of care provided by adult children to parents is about the same between male and female. However, men are more likely to provide financial assistance, and women tend to provide more personal care. The cumulative amount of lost Social Security benefits, pensions, and wages among these adult caregivers is around $3 trillion.
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Wearable medical devices such as the Fitbit are making increasing inroads into all aspects of life. Corporate wellness programs are embracing them as a way to encourage activity. In some cases, incentives may be provided to employees who meet certain activity and other health targets.

Insurance companies are also getting more interested in collecting biometric data from customers via wearable medical devices and other forms of monitoring. For example, John Hancock now offers "interactive" life insurance policies, under which customers can submit to optional fitness and activity tracking via wearable devices and smartphones.

While your employees can catch the flu year-round, fall and winter are the peak times for an outbreak. In 2018, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported 80,000 Americans died from the flu and more than 900,000 ended up in the hospital. 

​On average, U.S. employees miss more than 17 million workdays from the flu, costing employers $7 billion in sick days and lost productivity. Make sure your organization is prepared to help employees get through flu season.

About 700,000 Americans will have a new or recurrent stroke this year. Many people mistakenly think of strokes as only affecting the elderly, but 25 percent of all strokes occur in those under age 65. Not only is stroke the third-leading cause of death among Americans, it is also a leading cause of serious, long-term disability.
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What is a stroke?
Also called a brain attack, a stroke is as serious as a heart attack. It most often occurs when blood flow to the brain is blocked by a clot. The brain cells in the immediate area begin to die because they are prevented from receiving the oxygen and nutrients they need to function. There are two kinds of stroke, each with a different cause. In an ischemic stroke – the most common type – a clot blocks a blood vessel in the brain. A hemorrhagic stroke is caused by a blood vessel that breaks and bleeds into the brain.

Risk factors
Some risk factors are genetically determined, while others are the result of certain lifestyle choices. 

Visiting your primary care doctor at least once a year is essential to keeping your health on the right track. In fact, those who take preventive care seriously tend to be healthier and lead more productive lives. Our latest infographic describes three ways you can benefit from scheduling your annual checkup.

The U.S. Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion recommends that you consume at least two servings of fruit and three servings of vegetables each day. Although this varies by age, gender, and level of physical activity, it is a good recommendation to live by to build a healthy dietary base.

One great way to add variety to your diet and to make sure you are eating enough fruits and vegetables is to look for seasonal produce. Additionally, choosing in-season produce can help save you money, as the abundance of the fruit or vegetable typically makes it less expensive.

This summer, be mindful of what fruits and vegetables are in season near you. Fruits & Veggies—More Matters, a health initiative focused on helping Americans increase fruit and vegetable consumption for better health, has made it easy to figure out which produce is in season. On its website, you can view year-round, winter, spring, summer and fall produce options.

​Click here to see what’s in season this summer.