School of Health and Society, The University of Salford, Manchester, UK.
Health Promot Int. 2022 Oct 1;37(5). doi: 10.1093/heapro/daac129.
The workplace is considered an effective setting for health and wellbeing interventions, including programmes focusing on nutrition, and provides opportunities to tailor programmes to meet the specific needs of industry and employees. This study explored nutrition practices amongst construction workers and managers to inform the design of a nutrition intervention. Five focus groups were conducted on three construction sites: two with managers (n = 11) and three with workers (n = 27). Construction workers and managers identified several unhealthy nutrition-related behaviours, including high consumption of convenient and fast foods, excessive coffee, alcohol, energy drinks and low fruit and vegetable intake. These behaviours were often attributed to high workloads, long working hours and physically demanding jobs. Snacking and skipping meals were repeatedly reported, attributed to short breaks and poor accessibility to food outlets. The nutritional quality of meals differed between individuals (homemade vs fast food), depending on the type of sites (temporary vs permanent) and site location. Nutrition knowledge, establishing routines, meal planning and preparation were recognized as important in sustaining healthy nutrition habits. However, meal preparation depended on the facilities available, which differed between managers and workers, highlighting the complex relationship between the workplace context and eating behaviours. Construction workers were interested in learning about nutrition and improving their eating habits through nutrition intervention. However, they highlighted that better cooking and storage facilities on site, together with fewer job demands and longer break times, would enhance the sustainability of the intervention and their ability to make healthier food choices.
工作场所被认为是健康和福利干预的有效环境，包括专注于营养的计划，并提供了机会来定制计划以满足行业和员工的特定需求。本研究探讨了建筑工人和管理人员的营养实践，以为营养干预措施的设计提供信息。在三个建筑工地进行了五次焦点小组讨论：两个小组与管理人员（n = 11），三个小组与工人（n = 27）。建筑工人和管理人员确定了一些不健康的与营养相关的行为，包括方便食品和快餐的高消费、过量的咖啡、酒精、能量饮料以及水果和蔬菜的低摄入量。这些行为通常归因于高工作量、长时间工作和体力要求高的工作。反复报告了吃零食和不吃饭的行为，这归因于休息时间短和食品销售点难以接近。根据个人情况（自制食品与快餐）、工地类型（临时与永久）和工地位置，饮食的营养质量存在差异。营养知识、建立规律、饮食计划和准备被认为对维持健康的营养习惯很重要。然而，膳食准备取决于可用的设施，这在管理人员和工人之间存在差异，突出了工作场所环境和饮食习惯之间的复杂关系。建筑工人有兴趣了解营养知识并通过营养干预改善饮食习惯。然而，他们强调现场更好的烹饪和储存设施，加上更少的工作要求和更长的休息时间，将提高干预措施的可持续性和他们做出更健康食物选择的能力。
