Determinants of nutrition practice and food choice in UK construction workers

Wronska, MD; Coffey, M; Robins, A

Abstract

Summary 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.

Citation

Wronska, M., Coffey, M., & Robins, A. (2022). Determinants of nutrition practice and food choice in UK construction workers. Health Promotion International, 37(5), https://doi.org/10.1093/heapro/daac129

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Aug 15, 2022
• Online Publication Date: Sep 27, 2022
• Publication Date: Sep 27, 2022
• Deposit Date: Nov 4, 2022
• Publicly Available Date: Sep 28, 2023
• Journal: Health Promotion International
• Print ISSN: 0957-4824
• Publisher: Oxford University Press
• Volume: 37
• Issue: 5
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/heapro/daac129
• Publisher URL: https://doi.org/10.1093/heapro/daac129
• Additional Information: Additional Information : This is a pre-copyedited, author-produced version of an article accepted for publication in Health Promotion International following peer review. The version of record 'Magdalena Daria Wronska, Margaret Coffey, Anna Robins, Determinants of nutrition practice and food choice in UK construction workers, Health Promotion International, Volume 37, Issue 5, October 2022, daac129, https://doi.org/10.1093/heapro/daac129' is available online at: https://doi.org/10.1093/heapro/daac129; Projects : HSR1819-124