Assessment of nutrition and risks of development of the main general pathological syndromes in workers at industrial enterprises

Abstract

Optimal nutrition is one of the foundations of public health, but before developing and implementing effective programs to improve the nutrition of the able-bodied population at the regional and corporate level, it is important to know the nutritional situation of the target group. The study aims to assess the nutrition and risks of the development of the main general pathological syndromes in workers of industrial enterprises of the Republic of Buryatia. The study was conducted among male workers (n=251) aged 20-64 years, working at an Aircraft factory (group 1, n=71) with an average work experience of 19.72 (16.11; 23.33) years and thermal power plants (group 2, n=72) with an average work experience of 17.00 (13.68; 20.32) years. The comparison group (group 3, n=108) includes workers from the same enterprises without contact with occupational hazards, the average length of service is 19.79 (17.11; 22.48) years. Experts have carried out a nutrition assessment by the questionnaire method, followed by the use of the 24-hour power reproduction method in a computer program. The criteria for dividing into subgroups for assessing actual nutrition were based on the calculation of body mass index and age. We used an automated system for quantifying the risks of major general pathological syndromes (ASQRAS) to assess the health status of employees. Scientists analyzed the results of the study using generally accepted statistical methods. It is shown that the nutrition structure of workers in the main industries of the Republic of Buryatia is suboptimal, characterized by the predominance of the specific weight of total fats, which amounted to 41.03-45.25% of the caloric content of diets mainly due to the high proportion of saturated fatty acids 13.18-14.78%, low proportion of total carbohydrates 38.22-41.09% and critically low dietary fiber content - 2.31-2.50g per 1000 kcal. The obtained significant associations between overweight and various degrees of obesity with the risk of developing nutrition-related diseases, according to ASQRAS results in workers working in harmful conditions at thermal power plants, are probably due to a higher lipid content in their diet (χ2=7.04; p=0.001). The results of this study can be used to substantiate nutrition recommendations at the regional and corporate level. Limitations. The study had certain limitations in the form of survey opportunities, subject to the subjective opinion of respondents. Ethics. The researchers conducted a study in compliance with the Ethical principles set out in the Helsinki Declaration of the World Medical Association of the last revision and the approval of the Local Ethics Committee of the East Siberian Institute of Medical and Environmental Research (conclusion No. 1 of January 14, 2021).