Improving the diet of employees at blue-collar worksites: results from the 'Food at Work' intervention study

Anne Dahl Lassen; Anne Vibeke Thorsen; Helle Mølgaard Sommer; Sisse Fagt; Ellen Trolle; Anja Biltoft-Jensen; Inge Tetens

doi:10.1017/s1368980010003447

Improving the diet of employees at blue-collar worksites: results from the 'Food at Work' intervention study

Anne Dahl Lassen, Anne Vibeke Thorsen, Helle Mølgaard Sommer, Sisse Fagt, Ellen Trolle, Anja Biltoft-Jensen, Inge Tetens

28 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Objective To examine the impact of a 6-month participatory and empowerment-based intervention study on employees dietary habits and on changes in the canteen nutrition environment.Design Worksites were stratified by company type and by the presence or absence of an in-house canteen, and randomly allocated to either an intervention group (five worksites) or a minimum intervention control group (three worksites). The study was carried out in partnership with a trade union and guided by an ecological framework targeting both individual and environment levels. Outcome measures included: (i) changes in employees dietary habits derived from 4 d pre-coded food diaries of a group of employees at the worksites (paired-data structure); and (ii) the canteen nutrition environment as identified by aggregating chemical nutritional analysis of individual canteen lunches (different participants at baseline and at endpoint).Setting Eight blue-collar worksites (five of these with canteens).Subjects Employees.Results In the intervention group (n 102), several significant positive nutritional effects were observed among employees, including a median daily decrease in intake of fat (22 %E, P = 0002) and cake and sweets (18 g/10 MJ, P = 0002) and a median increase in intake of dietary fibre (3 g/10 MJ, P < 0001) and fruit (55 g/d, P = 0007 and 74 g/10 MJ, P = 0009). With regard to the canteen nutrition environment, a significant reduction in the percentage of energy obtained from fat was found in the intervention group (median difference 11 %E, P < 0001, n 144).Conclusions The present study shows that moderate positive changes in dietary patterns can be achieved among employees in blue-collar worksites.

Original language	English
Journal	Public Health Nutrition
Volume	14
Issue number	6
Pages (from-to)	965-974
Number of pages	10
ISSN	1368-9800
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1017/s1368980010003447
Publication status	Published - Jun 2010
Externally published	Yes

Keywords

Adult
Diet Surveys
Dietary Fats
Dietary Fiber
Eating
Energy Intake
Feeding Behavior
Female
Food
Food Services
Health Promotion
Humans
Male
Middle Aged
Occupational Health Services
Program Evaluation
Surveys and Questionnaires
Workplace
Nutrition intervention
Randomized Controlled Trial
Food environment
Canteen

UN SDGs

This output contributes to the following UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

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title = "Improving the diet of employees at blue-collar worksites: results from the 'Food at Work' intervention study",

abstract = "Objective To examine the impact of a 6-month participatory and empowerment-based intervention study on employees dietary habits and on changes in the canteen nutrition environment.Design Worksites were stratified by company type and by the presence or absence of an in-house canteen, and randomly allocated to either an intervention group (five worksites) or a minimum intervention control group (three worksites). The study was carried out in partnership with a trade union and guided by an ecological framework targeting both individual and environment levels. Outcome measures included: (i) changes in employees dietary habits derived from 4 d pre-coded food diaries of a group of employees at the worksites (paired-data structure); and (ii) the canteen nutrition environment as identified by aggregating chemical nutritional analysis of individual canteen lunches (different participants at baseline and at endpoint).Setting Eight blue-collar worksites (five of these with canteens).Subjects Employees.Results In the intervention group (n 102), several significant positive nutritional effects were observed among employees, including a median daily decrease in intake of fat (22 %E, P = 0002) and cake and sweets (18 g/10 MJ, P = 0002) and a median increase in intake of dietary fibre (3 g/10 MJ, P < 0001) and fruit (55 g/d, P = 0007 and 74 g/10 MJ, P = 0009). With regard to the canteen nutrition environment, a significant reduction in the percentage of energy obtained from fat was found in the intervention group (median difference 11 %E, P < 0001, n 144).Conclusions The present study shows that moderate positive changes in dietary patterns can be achieved among employees in blue-collar worksites.",

keywords = "Adult, Diet Surveys, Dietary Fats, Dietary Fiber, Eating, Energy Intake, Feeding Behavior, Female, Food, Food Services, Health Promotion, Humans, Male, Middle Aged, Occupational Health Services, Program Evaluation, Surveys and Questionnaires, Workplace, Nutrition intervention, Randomized Controlled Trial, Food environment, Canteen",

author = "Lassen, {Anne Dahl} and Thorsen, {Anne Vibeke} and Sommer, {Helle M{\o}lgaard} and Sisse Fagt and Ellen Trolle and Anja Biltoft-Jensen and Inge Tetens",

year = "2010",

month = jun,

doi = "10.1017/s1368980010003447",

language = "English",

volume = "14",

pages = "965--974",

journal = "Public Health Nutrition",

issn = "1368-9800",

publisher = "Cambridge University Press",

number = "6",

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TY - JOUR

T1 - Improving the diet of employees at blue-collar worksites

T2 - results from the 'Food at Work' intervention study

AU - Lassen, Anne Dahl

AU - Thorsen, Anne Vibeke

AU - Sommer, Helle Mølgaard

AU - Fagt, Sisse

AU - Trolle, Ellen

AU - Biltoft-Jensen, Anja

AU - Tetens, Inge

PY - 2010/6

Y1 - 2010/6

N2 - Objective To examine the impact of a 6-month participatory and empowerment-based intervention study on employees dietary habits and on changes in the canteen nutrition environment.Design Worksites were stratified by company type and by the presence or absence of an in-house canteen, and randomly allocated to either an intervention group (five worksites) or a minimum intervention control group (three worksites). The study was carried out in partnership with a trade union and guided by an ecological framework targeting both individual and environment levels. Outcome measures included: (i) changes in employees dietary habits derived from 4 d pre-coded food diaries of a group of employees at the worksites (paired-data structure); and (ii) the canteen nutrition environment as identified by aggregating chemical nutritional analysis of individual canteen lunches (different participants at baseline and at endpoint).Setting Eight blue-collar worksites (five of these with canteens).Subjects Employees.Results In the intervention group (n 102), several significant positive nutritional effects were observed among employees, including a median daily decrease in intake of fat (22 %E, P = 0002) and cake and sweets (18 g/10 MJ, P = 0002) and a median increase in intake of dietary fibre (3 g/10 MJ, P < 0001) and fruit (55 g/d, P = 0007 and 74 g/10 MJ, P = 0009). With regard to the canteen nutrition environment, a significant reduction in the percentage of energy obtained from fat was found in the intervention group (median difference 11 %E, P < 0001, n 144).Conclusions The present study shows that moderate positive changes in dietary patterns can be achieved among employees in blue-collar worksites.

AB - Objective To examine the impact of a 6-month participatory and empowerment-based intervention study on employees dietary habits and on changes in the canteen nutrition environment.Design Worksites were stratified by company type and by the presence or absence of an in-house canteen, and randomly allocated to either an intervention group (five worksites) or a minimum intervention control group (three worksites). The study was carried out in partnership with a trade union and guided by an ecological framework targeting both individual and environment levels. Outcome measures included: (i) changes in employees dietary habits derived from 4 d pre-coded food diaries of a group of employees at the worksites (paired-data structure); and (ii) the canteen nutrition environment as identified by aggregating chemical nutritional analysis of individual canteen lunches (different participants at baseline and at endpoint).Setting Eight blue-collar worksites (five of these with canteens).Subjects Employees.Results In the intervention group (n 102), several significant positive nutritional effects were observed among employees, including a median daily decrease in intake of fat (22 %E, P = 0002) and cake and sweets (18 g/10 MJ, P = 0002) and a median increase in intake of dietary fibre (3 g/10 MJ, P < 0001) and fruit (55 g/d, P = 0007 and 74 g/10 MJ, P = 0009). With regard to the canteen nutrition environment, a significant reduction in the percentage of energy obtained from fat was found in the intervention group (median difference 11 %E, P < 0001, n 144).Conclusions The present study shows that moderate positive changes in dietary patterns can be achieved among employees in blue-collar worksites.

KW - Adult

KW - Diet Surveys

KW - Dietary Fats

KW - Dietary Fiber

KW - Eating

KW - Energy Intake

KW - Feeding Behavior

KW - Female

KW - Food

KW - Food Services

KW - Health Promotion

KW - Humans

KW - Male

KW - Middle Aged

KW - Occupational Health Services

KW - Program Evaluation

KW - Surveys and Questionnaires

KW - Workplace

KW - Nutrition intervention

KW - Randomized Controlled Trial

KW - Food environment

KW - Canteen

U2 - 10.1017/s1368980010003447

DO - 10.1017/s1368980010003447

M3 - Journal article

C2 - 21208479

SN - 1368-9800

VL - 14

SP - 965

EP - 974

JO - Public Health Nutrition

JF - Public Health Nutrition

IS - 6

ER -

Improving the diet of employees at blue-collar worksites: results from the 'Food at Work' intervention study

Abstract

Keywords

UN SDGs

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