Office cake culture: an exploration of its characteristics and associated behaviours and attitudes among UK office workers and implications for workplace health

Abstract

Winter Meeting, 4-5 December 2018, Optimal diet and lifestyle strategies for the management of cardio-metabolic risk Office cake culture: an exploration of its characteristics and associated behaviours and attitudes among UK office workers and implications for workplace healthThe workplace is an important setting for the promotion of healthy lifestyle choices (1) . Eating frequency and energy intake from snacking have risen in recent decades (2) with cakes and similar sweet baked goods the primary energy contributors to snack food (3) . Providing such foods for colleagues to share, 'office cake' (OC), is a prominent form of workplace snacking and is speculated to lead to increased energy intake and obesity (4) . However no data are available. The present study explored the characteristics of OC consumption and associated attitudes and behaviours to gain insight to its impact on workplace health. OC was defined as cakes and sweet foods supplied by employees or managers to share with colleagues. A specifically-developed 38-item cross-sectional online questionnaire based on the Theory of Planned Behaviour (5) was completed by UK office workers in May 2017. Recruitment was through snowball and cluster sampling. Data were analysed using descriptive statistics and cross-tabulations with chi-square tests to test for between-group differences. Significance was set at p ≤ 0.05.Nine hundred and forty office workers (39.3 % male) participated. OC was available to 86.4 % respondents between one and five times/week, 66.5 % ate it at least once/week and 36.0 % never refused it. For 70.9 %, cake was displayed in the main working area and 58.1 % said they would be less likely to eat OC if it was out of view. Attitudes and behaviour were significantly affected by gender and age. If OC is available, 41.5 % said they often or always eat it, of whom significantly more were men (48.9 %) than women (36.6 %) and 18-29 year olds (18-29s) (52.3 %) than ≥50 year olds (≥50s) (35.4 %). Overall, women were more concerned than men about the presence and negative consequences of OC. Significantly more women than men strongly agreed/agreed that OC had contributed to weight gain (36.6 % and 23.4 % respectively), made it harder to eat healthily at work (41.4 % and 31.5 % respectively) and often/ always felt regret after eating it (27.3 % and 14.1 % respectively). Fewer older respondents than younger approved of OC. Significantly fewer ≥50s than 18-29s strongly agreed/agreed OC is 'a good thing' (53.5 % and 70.9 % respectively) or a good way to show appreciation (59.7 % and 82.0 % respectively). Over half (58.2 %) the respondents found it hard at least sometimes to refuse OC if everyone else is eating it, with significantly more women (25.0 %) than men (19.3 %) and 18-29s (30.2 %) than ≥50s (17.3 %) responding 'often/always'. Almost all (94.8 %) respondents considered ideal OC frequency to be once/week or less. The mode ideal frequency was once/month (41.3 %).OC appears to influence the UK office physical eating environment and employee dietary be...

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“…The workplace is an important setting where snacking takes place (Liu et al , 2015). In the so-called “office cake culture”, sharing of cake and other sweet foods among colleagues to eat at the workplace is very common and socially acceptable (Lake et al , 2016; Walker and Flannery, 2020). Foods consumed at work are typically higher in fat, added sugar and sodium and lower in fruits, vegetables and whole grains (Onufrak et al , 2019).…”

Free Food at Work: A Concept Analysis

“…The consumption of free sweet and ultra-processed foods was deemed “cake culture” by the Royal College of Surgeons Faculty of Dental Surgery in the United Kingdom in a position statement to decrease sugar consumption in the workplace (Royal College of Surgeons, Faculty of Dental Surgery, 2016). Subsequently, L. Walker and Flannery (2020) studied the frequency and perceived social and health consequences of the consumption of sweet foods in the workplace and called the phenomenon “office cake” or “OC.” Here, office cake was defined as “cakes or other sweet foods (biscuits, pastries and confectionery) provided by employees or managers to share with colleagues” (L.…”

“…Subsequently, L. Walker and Flannery (2020) studied the frequency and perceived social and health consequences of the consumption of sweet foods in the workplace and called the phenomenon “office cake” or “OC.” Here, office cake was defined as “cakes or other sweet foods (biscuits, pastries and confectionery) provided by employees or managers to share with colleagues” (L. Walker and Flannery, 2020).…”

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“…Social pressure can affect FOE, food choice, and diet quality. A research team in the United Kingdom recently studied the impact of eating outside of meals as a social act in the office environment by evaluating “office cake” consumption, where a cake is shared among colleagues to celebrate milestones and recognize employee accomplishments ( Walker and Flannery, 2020 ). Nearly 60% of respondents in a cross-sectional study of 940 office-based employees in England ate “office cake” at least once a week, and “office cake” was available up to 5 times a week in most workplaces ( Walker and Flannery, 2020 ).…”