Journal Club 6: Changing Diet and Physical Activity in Nurses: A Pilot Study and Process Evaluation Highlighting Challenges in Workplace Health Promotion

About the Webinar

Diet and physical activity are crucial and modifiable factors of health and disease status. Knowing this, however, does not automatically make someone eat healthier and become active. Work environment and job demands are often oversee as upstream determinants of diet and physical activity behaviors. In this presentation we will see how this is the case for nurse. Nurses job is characterized by shift-work and a demanding environment, which has been linked to the high rates of poor eating habits, low physical activity, and excess weight. We will explore how these factors limit the success of workplace programs aimed at help nurses achieve and maintain a healthy lifestyle. We will then evaluate and understand key factors to overcome barriers to creating programs to help nurses change unhealthy behaviors and how these overlap with other professions with similar characteristics (i.e. shift-work).

Related JNEB article. 

About the Presenter

Luciana Torquati, PhD, RDN
Luciana is a registered nutritionist (UK), with a PhD in Nutrition and Dietetics from the University of Queensland (Australia). She recently joined the University of Exeter (UK), as a Lecturer in Nutrition and responsible for developing a new BSc Nutrition program. Her overarching research focus is on how modifying diet and physical activity behaviors can promote health and prevent chronic disease; either by direct changes in diet (sugar, fiber) and physical activity level/fitness, or indirectly via environmental factors (social factors, workplace, policy).