A cross-sectional investigation into the occupational and socio-demographic characteristics of British police force employees reporting a dietary pattern associated with cardiometabolic risk: findings from the Airwave Health Monitoring Study

Abstract

PurposeThe aims of this study were to (1) determine the association between diet quality using the Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) score and cardiometabolic risk in a British working population and (2) identify employee characteristics associated with reporting a poorer quality dietary pattern.MethodsBritish police employees enrolled (2007–2012) into the Airwave Health Monitoring Study (n = 5527) were included for sex-specific cross-sectional analyses. Dietary intakes were measured using 7-day food records. DASH score was calculated to determine diet quality. Logistic regression evaluated associations between (1) diet quality and increased cardiometabolic risk (defined as ≥ 3 risk markers: dyslipidaemia, elevated blood pressure, waist circumference, CRP or HbA1c), and (2) poor diet quality (lowest fifth of DASH score distribution) and employee characteristics.ResultsEmployees recording a poor diet quality had greater odds (OR) of increased cardiometabolic risk independent of established risk factors (demographic, lifestyle and occupational) and BMI: men OR 1.50 (95% CI 1.12–2.00), women: OR 1.84 (95% CI 1.19–2.97) compared to the healthiest diet group. Characteristics associated with reporting a poor quality diet were employment in Scotland vs. England: men OR 1.88 (95% CI 1.53–2.32), women: OR 1.49 (95% CI 1.11–2.00), longer working hours (≥ 49 vs. ≤40 h) men: OR 1.53 (95% CI 1.21–1.92) women: OR 1.53 (95% CI 1.12–2.09). For men, job strain (high vs. low) was associated with reporting a poor diet quality OR 1.66 (95% CI 1.30–2.12).ConclusionsThe general population disparities in diet quality between England and Scotland were reflected in British police employees. The association of longer working hours and job strain with diet quality supports the targeting of workplace nutritional interventions.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1007/s00394-017-1562-4) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Working hours and cardiometabolic health – an emerging area of nutritional research

“…Furthermore, a frequently overlooked aspect of working hour research is the co-existence of long working hours and shift work (H€ arm€ a et al 2015). This association has been observed in British police employees (Gibson et al 2017); however, the significance of this in relation to dietary intake is yet to be investigated. To draw causal inference from observational findings requires biological plausibility.…”

“…This association has been observed in British police employees (Gibson et al . ); however, the significance of this in relation to dietary intake is yet to be investigated. To draw causal inference from observational findings requires biological plausibility.…”

“…A recent study exploring the occupational determinants of diet quality in British police force employees observed that male employees working more than 48 hours per week were more likely to report a poorer quality diet (defined by the Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension quality index) than those working 40 hours or less per week, independent of geographical region, age and income (Gibson et al . ). While there are inconsistent results showing an association between shift work and alcohol intake (Nea et al .…”

“…Despite the heterogeneity across population samples and methodology, in a number of these studies longer duration of working hours was associated with increased fast food consumption (Devine et al 2009;Escoto et al 2010;Fan et al 2015) and differences in the distribution and regularity of food intake (Maruyama & Morimoto 1996;Nakamura et al 1998;Devine et al 2009). A recent study exploring the occupational determinants of diet quality in British police force employees observed that male employees working more than 48 hours per week were more likely to report a poorer quality diet (defined by the Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension quality index) than those working 40 hours or less per week, independent of geographical region, age and income (Gibson et al 2017). While there are inconsistent results showing an association between shift work and alcohol intake (Nea et al 2015), a recent meta-analysis found an association between high weekly alcohol consumption (>14 alcohol drinks for women and >21 for men) and working 55 hours or more per week, compared to 35-40 hours per week (Virtanen et al 2015).…”

Prevalence of Metabolic Syndrome and Lifestyle Characteristics by Business Type among Japanese Workers in Small- and Medium-sized Enterprises

“…b Metabolic syndrome was diagnosed based on the presence of three of the five risk criteria from the joint statement by the International Diabetes Federation; American Heart Association; National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute; World Heart Federation, International Atherosclerosis Society; and International Association for the Study of Obesity. 10 ous studies have shown that long working hours are associated with poor diet quality, 31 smoking, 32 and physical inactivity. 33 Because transportation workers likely work prolonged hours, it may be difficult for them to maintain healthy lifestyle habits.…”