Physical training in the fire station and firefighters’ cardiovascular health

Abstract

Background Few fire departments in Québec have a diversified health promotion programme. Yet, many allow firefighters to physically train during working hours. Aims To compare the weekly physical activity (PA) level and cardiovascular health indicators of firefighters who physically train on duty to those who do not. Methods Participants underwent a cardiovascular health assessment and completed an online questionnaire. Results One hundred and five full-time male firefighters participated in the study. Two groups were formed: firefighters who physically train while on duty (E, n = 64) and firefighters who do not (NoE, n = 41). Following statistical adjustments, off-duty weekly PA was not different between the two groups (E: 239 ± 224 versus NoE: 269 ± 249 min, P = 0.496); however, total weekly PA was higher (P = 0.035) in E (381 ± 288 min) than in NoE (274 ± 200 min). A difference was also observed in obesity prevalence measured with waist circumference (E: 9% versus NoE: 27%, P = 0.026) and in physical inactivity prevalence (E: 0% versus NoE: 27%, P < 0.001). After statistical adjustments, E firefighters have a significantly lower waist-to-height ratio than NoE firefighters (E: 0.51 ± 0.05 versus NoE: 0.54 ± 0.05, P = 0.017). Conclusions Results show that firefighters who physically train while on duty have a higher total PA level on a weekly basis and have better cardiovascular health indicators. Our findings suggest that fire services should promote physical training while on duty to improve firefighters’ cardiovascular health.

Cardiovascular Disease Risk Factors, Musculoskeletal Health, Physical Fitness, and Occupational Performance in Firefighters: A Narrative Review

“…However, regular exercise when on duty did reduce the incidence of injuries outside of the workplace. High workload when on duty, compounded by exercise or training workload and inadequate recovery possibly produced a burdensome triad that reduced musculoskeletal health and contributed to the increased incidence of duty-related injury [ 78 , 82 ].…”

Relationship Between Physical Activity, Coronary Artery Disease Risk Factors and Musculoskeletal Injuries in the City of Cape Town Fire and Rescue Service

“…Similarly, Damacena et al 64 reported that central obesity was more likely in firefighters who had low PA levels. Gendron et al 65 reported that there was a significant difference in WC and obesity in firefighters who trained while on duty than those who did not. Although firefighters remain active while on duty, because they are not exercising at a moderate-to-high-intensity they do not receive the additional benefits of increased energy expenditure associated with fat loss.…”

Lifestyle and environmental factors may induce airway and systemic inflammation in firefighters

“…However, it should be noted that blood pressure increased throughout the study period (Lan et al 2021 ). For this reason, some authors indicated the need for the implementation of physical activity and nutrition outreach programs, which would increase physical activity in this group and reduce the incidence of overweight and obesity (Martin et al 2019 ; Barry et al 2020 ; Gendron et al 2020 ).…”