Walk begins Great West health focus

Walkers at the Healthy Trucking Association of America trek pictured this spring in Louisville, Ky.Walkers at the Healthy Trucking Association of America trek pictured this spring in Louisville, Ky.

A health fun walk at 10:30 a.m. Thursday, June 17, leaves from the first Health, Wellness and Safety Pavilion at the Great West Truck Show in Las Vegas.

The pavilion features health-related exhibits and a presentation area where attendees can participate in interactive demonstrations and learn about resources available to help drivers improve their health.

Walkers should be at the pavilion, located at Booth #1649, by 10:15 a.m. Thursday for the 1.5-mile walk, which will be led by national fitness celebrity Bob Perry, the Trucker Trainer.

Starting and ending the trek at the pavilion, participants will receive packets with health information and giveaways, while supplies last. All show visitors are invited to the walk, say sponsors, the Healthy Trucking Association of America and Truckers News Fit for the Road program.

Blood pressure screening, Body Mass Index measurements and other testing will be offered daily. Pavilion exhibitors include sleep apnea systems providers, blood pressure monitoring and exercise equipment makers, medical service providers, vitamin and supplement makers, diet counselors and insurance companies, among others.

The pavilion was formed to address increasingly serious issues of truckers’ health, sponsors say. Over-the-road truckers have a less-than 60-year life expectancy, and obesity, heart disease and diabetes are increasingly common among them. With these issues in the forefront, Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration attention to driver health regulations has been rising.

“Our Fit for the Road program has been actively promoting the need for greater awareness of health-related issues that affect so many of today’s over-the-road drivers,” said Truckers News Editor Randy Grider.

The pavilion will showcase products and services “now available to help our nation’s drivers get healthy and live longer lives,” says Brett Blowers, marketing director for the Healthy Trucking Association of America.

The Health, Wellness and Safety Pavilion will travel to the 2010 Great American Trucking Show, Aug. 25-27, in Dallas.

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Truckers News Fit for the Road (www.fitfortheroad.com) will be at Booth #1748.