The nutritional status of nurses working shifts: A pilot study in Turkey

Abstract

Estado nutricional de enfermeiras em regime de trabalho por turnos: um estudo piloto na Turquia A B S T R A C T ObjectiveThis study was carried out to determine the nutritional status of shift-working female nurses at a university hospital in Ankara, Turkey. MethodsA total of 110 volunteer female nurses (n=56 control group, n=54 study group) were included in the study. A questionnaire with a three day food record collected the study data. ResultsThe mean daily energy intake of the study group was higher than that of the control group (1756±659 kcal versus 1694±431 kcal, p>0.05). While the carbohydrate intake (196.3±85.5 g versus 185.9±54.7 g) and fat intake (79.5±29.5 g versus 77.1±22.6 g) were higher in the study group, the protein intake was higher in the control group (59.4±17.6 g versus 57.6±21.6 g). The mean iron intake was statistically higher in the control group (10.6±2.9 mg versus 10.0±4.0 mg, p<0.05). ConclusionTo improve night shift workers' performance and nutritional status it is important to provide accessible, healthy, and quality food services. Keywords I N T R O D U C T I O NShift work is defined as scheduled work that is completed outside the parameters of the traditional day shift, which is usually considered to be between 6.00 and 18.00 1 . Shift work is prevalent across the world. In the United States, approximately 15% of full time workers are shift workers employed across a wide variety of industries and, in Europe, the figure is 20%. This number reaches 36% in China 2,3 and, in Turkey, 8% of the working population is composed of shift workers 4 . Shift work is associated with several health, social, and security problems possibly due to an impairment of biological rhythms and a negative working environment 5 . Studies have shown that problems, such as gastrointestinal diseases, body weight changes, cardiovascular diseases, negative eating habits, lack of exercise, excessive caffeine consumption, and smoking are more common among shift workers [6][7][8][9][10] . These problems may derive from disruption to physiological, psychological, and social circadian rhythms 11 .As people work irregular hours, their daily routine is interrupted. Regular eating and sleeping habits are difficult to maintain 12 . A regular meal time helps maintain a stable order in the circadian system, but in the 24 hours working period, especially in night shift working, regular eating is frequently abandoned. Even if there is no definition of nocturnal life, delayed sleeping and eating, and the irregular meal times due to shift working are considered important circadian rhythm disruptors 13 . The interruption of regular eating habits is more common among shift workers, in particular, during night work. Although calorie intake remains substantially unaltered compared with the day shift, the quality, quantity, and frequency of food eaten by shift workers differ. On the night shift they usually have quick meals, consisting of fast food, and increase their intake of caffeinated drinks, such as tea and coffee [14][15][1...

Night shift working and its impact on sleep quality, calorie intake, and serum thyroid stimulating hormone level among health-care workers in a tertiary hospital, Bengaluru

“…They also have more consumption of caffeinated drinks, such as tea and coffee. [3] In the present study, there was no statistically significant difference in the overall calorie intake (kcal/day) among the day shift and night shift workers, although the meal consumed among day shift workers differed from the meal consumed among night shift workers. Our results were consistent with Debry et al, [25] who was one of the first to demonstrate that the total energy intake for workers on alternating shifts is similar to that of day workers.…”

“…These problems may be due to disruption to psychological, physiological, and social circadian rhythms due to shift work. [3] Disturbed sleep is one of the major problems among shift workers. This is independent of smoking, drinking habits, and levels of physical activity.…”

“…The total number of main meals consumed per day was also significantly higher for day workers compared to shift workers. [3] Therefore, this study was designed to study and to compare the impact of night shift working on sleep quality, calorie intake, and serum TSH level among health-care workers, i.e. day shift and night shift workers in a tertiary hospital.…”

Shift work, sleep, and burnout: the impact of Mediterranean dietary pattern and nutritional status on emergency healthcare workers

“…Shift workers have a higher energy intake and consumption of dairy products, meat, grains and fish, although they have a similar dietary quality to day workers (Hulsegge et al, 2016). In one research, it was found that shift work nurses (n = 54) had a higher intake of energy, carbohydrates, protein, fat (p > 0.05) and iron (p < 0.05) compared with day workers (n = 54) (Navruz Varlı and Bilici, 2016). Similarly, we found higher energy, carbohydrate, protein, fat, cholesterol, sodium, iron and zinc intake on the shift day than on the rest day (p < 0.05).…”

Dietary Patterns, Occupational Stressors and Body Composition of Hospital Workers: A Longitudinal Study Comparing before and during the COVID-19 Pandemic

“…In addition, the global crisis triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic not only sharpened the structurally present occupational stressors, but also produced new stressors, which added to the pre-existing ones [24]. Studies pointed out working stressors influencing these professionals' eating habits and nutritional status, as shift work is associated with a lower protein and higher energy, carbohydrates and lipids intake; skipping meals is associated with long working hours; and a higher frequency of eating in snack bars [25][26][27]. Therefore, excess weight was not just a result of personal choices [23,[28][29][30], particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic in which the physical and mental exhaustion that was exacerbated in this period caused an imbalance in energy intake and an excessive use of oil and salt in meals [31] and forced health professionals to eat at non-habitual times [32].…”