The medical team of doctors at GlobeMed, the leading healthcare benefits management company in the Middle East, has conducted a literature review on the effects of Endocrine Disrupting Chemicals (EDC) and their interference with the body hormones. The review was supervised by Dr. Elia Abdul Massih, Goodcare Clinics Director, and prepared by Dr. Karen Abou Jaoude, Population Health Specialist. It demonstrated that even at low levels of exposure, EDCs can induce adverse health effects, contributing significantly to the development of diseases such as cancers, asthma, diabetes, genital defects and obesity. Furthermore, the review established six easy ways to decrease exposure to these harmful chemicals.   

EDCs are exogenous chemicals or mixtures that can interfere with hormone actions in our bodies in a negative way. Hormones are messengers released from endocrine glands in the body necessary for our healthy survival. EDCs can be found in many everyday products, including some plastic bottles and containers, liners of metal food cans, detergents, flame retardants, food, toys, cosmetics, pesticides, natural estrogen and progesterone, plastic, hormonally active drugs and synthetic hormones. This array of products confirms that we are exposed daily to low doses of EDCs without even suspecting or realizing it. Some of these chemicals include but are not limited to:

• Bisphenol A (BPA): used to make plastic products including food storage containers
• Perchlorate: a by-product found in drinking water and fireworks
• Perfluoroalkyl and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS): used widely in industrial applications, such as firefighting foams and non-stick pan, paper, and textile coatings

EDCs can induce harmful effects by either changing the amount of hormones available or interfering with their corresponding receptors. This has resulted in the increasing prevalence of many endocrine diseases such as diabetes and obesity. For diseases to occur, there is always an interplay of genetic and environmental factors. Therefore, it is essential to try and control our environment by limiting exposure to such chemicals as much as possible.  In this vein, it is recommended to follow six simple steps to reduce contact with EDCs and diminish their harmful effects:

1. Eat organic foods to avoid pesticides. Choose organically grown fruits and vegetables to limit pesticide exposure. Start with the “dirty dozen” which, if grown conventionally, harbor the most pesticides as they are sprayed directly. These include bell peppers, spinach, nectarines, grapes, peach, pear, celery, lettuce, potatoes, cherries, strawberries and apples.
2. Avoid canned and processed food. Cans contain an array of bisphenols that act similarly to estrogen and oppose the hormone adiponectin, thus increasing the size of fat cells and contributing to doubling the risk of diabetes. Cans containing “BPA-free” labels are not safe either as they still contain a large number of bisphenols.  
3. Avoid thermal paper receipts. Thesehave been linked to an increase in breast and prostate cancers, cardiovascular disease, and reproductive and brain development abnormalities. It is recommended not to accept receipts and go paperless instead, but if you must handle them, hold it from the non-glossy backside. After handling the receipt, wash your hands with soap and water within 4 minutes. If your job requires your ongoing handling of receipts, wear latex gloves. Lastly, do not use a hand sanitizer after touching a possible thermal receipt. Research has shown the BPA level went up by185% after using skin products such as sunscreens, moisturizer and sanitizers.
4. Beware of plastics that contain phthalates and parabens, which have various effects. Be vigilant of the following labels:  

Do not microwave plastics even if they are labelled as microwave safe. Throw away scratched plastics as their protective layer would be lost. 

1. Create a healthy home as flame-retardants and other organic pollutants found in electronic devices and furniture accumulate in your household as dust can interfere with the normal functioning of the thyroid gland. Therefore, it is advised to open the windows regularly to filter the air in the house, vacuuming at least once per week and mopping the house with a wet mop.
2. Avoid non-sticking cooking pansas they contain PFAS. These interfere with metabolism and have shown to induce rebound weight gain after a successful diet. An alternative would be to use cast iron or stainless steel cookware.

Endocrine Disrupting Chemicals are all around us, having drastic effects on our health and contributing significantly to the development of several non-communicable diseases. These six simple steps make it easier to take control of our health and limit our everyday exposure to such chemicals.

This study was prepared based on the following References:

- Lee, Duk-Hee. "Evidence of the possible harm of endocrine-disrupting chemicals in humans: ongoing debates and key issues." Endocrinology and Metabolism 33.1 (2018): 44-52.

- Lee, Duk-Hee, et al. "Chlorinated persistent organic pollutants, obesity, and type 2 diabetes." Endocrine reviews 35.4 (2014): 557-601.

- Taylor, Kyla W., et al. "Evaluation of the association between persistent organic pollutants (POPs) and diabetes in epidemiological studies: a national toxicology program workshop review." Environmental health perspectives 121.7 (2013): 774-783.

-  Kusminski, Christine M., et al. "MitoNEET-driven alterations in adipocyte mitochondrial activity reveal a crucial adaptive process that preserves insulin sensitivity in obesity." Nature medicine 18.10 (2012): 1539.

- Curtis, Sandra. “Is BPA on Thermal Paper A Health Risk?” Plastic Pollution Coalition, Plastic Pollution Coalition, 23 Dec. 2016, www.plasticpollutioncoalition.org/blog/2016/12/23/is-bpa-on-thermal-paper-a-health-hazard.

- Vandenberg, Laura, et al. “Let's Talk EDCs.” Endocrine Society, Endocrine Society, 2019, www.endocrine.org/topics/edc/talking-edcs.

- Trasande, Leonardo. “Avoiding Endocrine-Disrupting Chemicals: 5 Tips.” Medscape, Medscape, 7 Feb. 2020, www.medscape.com/viewarticle/924846.

This study is a general guideline intended for informational purposes only and does not provide medical advice. It is prepared based on information and data available in the references above. GlobeMed neither undertakes nor guarantees that such information is complete and error-free. GlobeMed will not be liable for any direct, indirect, consequential, special, exemplary, or other damages arising therefrom.

GlobeMed Lebanon recently introduced a unique wellness platform “GlobeMed FIT” combining fitness, nutrition, health and insurance. “GlobeMed FIT”, a network of these four sections all aimed at helping the user live healthier, with each section dedicated to a different area of their personal health and wellness. 

The App allows the user keep track today of one’s fitness, nutrition, health, follow-up on their own medical history and consistent intake of prescribed drugs, medications or treatments as well as their personal insurance claims; thus benefiting from a virtual health advisor 24 hours a day without moving or spending 20 minutes waiting for a specialist at the other end to answer their queries.

Commenting on the new innovation, GlobeMed Lebanon’s General Manager, Mr. Walid Hallasou said:

“GlobeMed Lebanon has made its mission to manage healthcare in Lebanon, not only as a Third Party Administrator but also as a reference in wellness, healthier living and disease management encouraging people to lead better and healthier lives and ultimately moving the sector from “sick” care to “health” care.

 “A key manifestation of this is GlobeMed’s state-of-the-art FIT app, which constitutes an unparalleled health advisor and an important illustration of how the company utilizes digital tools to create a culture of prevention among the Lebanese population”, he added.

The main aim of “GlobeMed FIT” is to provide a single point of reference for all of the user’s aggregated nutrition, health, fitness and insurance data, and so the more trust and data you can plug into it, the better and more personal it becomes adhering to your health needs as well feeding one with wellness and specific medical advice and articles in relevance to their health status identified by the app. So If you're looking for one, all-inclusive app that will take on all health-related tasks to the next level, “GlobeMed FIT” is the go-to platform.

As a smart application, all four sections of the “GlobeMed FIT” interact with one another in such a way as to track one’s daily activities, monitor food intake and log medical records. These also go hand in hand with another unique addition of a digitized insurance service experience, now made available to GlobeMed insured members.  The GlobeMed FIT App will analyze one’s data across all the above sections and will act as their personal wellness advisor to help you lead a healthier lifestyle.

Furthermore, GlobeMed FIT app sets itself as unique being region specific and locally programmed to understand and analyze the “Lebanese and region-specific health scene”; remarkably its local food databases offering calorie counts of Lebanese dishes in addition to its local built-in GPS feeding the user with local insights aside from barcode scanners that can quickly identify calorie counts of your daily intake.

In conclusion, the more trust and personal data fed in by the user, the more the app becomes personal and adhering to your health needs by depositing your data. Get to know FIT available on Google Play and Apple Store. Visit www.globemedfit.com

GlobeMed Group has won the prestigious “Third Party Administrator” award at the annual MENA IR Insurance Awardsevent. The winners were announced on the evening of February 1, 2017, at a gala dinner at the Ritz-Carlton DIFC, Dubai, UAE.

Mr. Ziad Kharma, Vice-President for Actuarial Services, received the award on behalf of GlobeMed Group. Congratulating the team members on this success, Mr. Z. Kharma expressed his pride for this achievement, stating that this award is a distinguished recognition for the GlobeMed group, which will reinforce the will of GlobeMed to provide further Solutions and creative services to its clients and their members.

The event, organized by the prestigious MENA Insurance Review Magazine, honored GlobeMed Group for providing innovative and pioneer services and solutions that cater to the needs of its clients, using the latest technological advancements in the Healthcare Benefit Management sector. Throughout 2016, the Group introduced solutions to enhance automation and its expert system dedicated to automated issuance of the coverage decisions, aiming at processing the largest number of claims without any complications.

Subsequent to celebrating its Silver Jubilee crowning twenty five years of achievements, GlobeMed Group adds this award today, to its growing list of achievements having won the “Medical administrator” award in 2014 and “TPA of the Year” in 2015 also in Dubai, a testament to the collective efforts that pushed GlobeMed Group to assume its leadership role, expanding to 12 countries in the MENA region. 

Introducing GlobeMed Academy, the state of the art E-learning platform from GlobeMed group. Here, employees, partners and insured members can enjoy must read topics, learn about business and cultural events and get to know the different courses and trainings offered by learning centers in the region. Cherry on top, freebies ranging from games to e-books are available for download.

Visit the site at www.globemedacademy.com

After a fruitful intervention at last year's event, GlobeMed Lebanon was keen on sponsoring the Medhealth Beirut 2013 conference, held on November 28 & 29 at Le Royal Hotel.

This year's edition, "Future Strategies in Lebanese Healthcare Sector", highlighted new world trends in healthcare coverage and the legislations and regulations that have the biggest impact on that sector's challenges and success.

Many government officials were invited to participate in discussion panels, creating interaction with all the stakeholders to reach a unified vision for the future of the healthcare sector in Lebanon. GlobeMed Lebanon took an active part in these talks, represented by Mr. Guy Saad, its Marketing Actuary, who discussed the TPA experience in the different settlement models, within a panel handling the issue of the impact of accreditation on the reimbursement system, and Mr. Fady Saadeh, Network Manager, who participated in an open discussion on the relation between hospitals and payers.

GlobeMed Lebanon's network team also set up a booth in the exhibitor's area to welcome the conference's guests and answer their queries.

Trust is not given.
Trust is earned.

Over the past 22 years, GlobeMed Lebanon has lived up to its promise of improving healthcare services to more than 30 client insurers and 350,000 insured members. So it’s no surprise when Arab Lebanese Insurance Group (ALIG), a pioneering insurance company that has built a reputation for itself as a financially solid and professional insurer, would put its trust in our company and collaborate with us on promising endeavors.

After all, trust and success are two sides of the same coin.

The Lebanese Order of Physicians (LOP) in Beirut has placed its trust in GlobeMed Lebanon to serve and administer its medical portfolio of 8,000 beneficiaries and their respective family members.

In this framework, the LOP renewed its insurance agreement with both AXA Middle East and the Libano-Suisse insurance companies effective as of June 1, 2013.

GlobeMed Lebanon grants all LOP adherents and their families, the ability to be served in all Lebanese hospitals and in more than 1,050 medical providers. Adherents are also covered abroad in emergency cases.

After all Trust is earned, not given!