The Relationship Between Dietary Intake and Dietary-Focused Lifestyle Interventions on Risk Factors Associated with Cardiovascular Disease in Firefighters

Burris, Jennifer C; Werner, Charlotte Marie; Woolf, Kathleen

doi:10.1007/s13668-022-00406-3

Cited by 5 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 55 publications

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“…Notably, unhealthy dietary habits, overweight and obesity are prevalent among firefighters ( 3 ). Studies have shown that over 70% of US firefighters are either overweight or obese, exceeding the national average for adults in the US ( 61 , 62 ) Additionally, hypertension, metabolic syndrome, dyslipidemia, and smokeless tobacco are also prevalent among US firefighters ( 63 ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Surviving & Thriving; a healthy lifestyle app for new US firefighters: usability and pilot study protocol

Hershey,

Bouziani,

Chen

et al. 2023

Front. Endocrinol.

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In the United States (US), new firefighters’ fitness and health behaviors deteriorate rapidly after fire academy graduation. Over the long-term, this increases their risks for chronic diseases. This study protocol describes the proposed usability testing and pilot study of a newly designed and developed healthy lifestyle smartphone app, “Surviving & Thriving”, tailored towards young US firefighters. “Surviving & Thriving” will provide interactive educational content on four lifestyle factors; nutrition, sleep, physical activity, and resilience, and include a personalized journey, habit tracker, and elements of gamification to promote engagement and long-term healthy behavior change. The first phase of the app development entails alpha testing by the research team and pre-beta testing by a fire service expert panel which will help refine the app into a pre-consumer version. Upon completion of the full app prototype, beta ‘usability’ testing will be conducted among new fire academy graduates from two New England fire academies to collect qualitative and quantitative feedback via focus groups and satisfaction surveys, respectively. A last phase of piloting the app will evaluate the app’s efficacy at maintaining/improving healthy lifestyle behaviors, mental health metrics, and physical fitness metrics. We will also evaluate whether firefighters’ perceived “health cultures” scores (ratings of each fire station’s/fire department’s environments as to encouraging/discouraging healthy behaviors) modify the changes in health metrics after utilizing the app for three to six months. This novel user-friendly app seeks to help new firefighters maintain/improve their health and fitness more effectively, reducing their risk of lifestyle-related chronic disease. Firefighters who can establish healthy habits early in their careers are more likely to sustain them throughout their lives.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Surviving & Thriving; a healthy lifestyle app for new US firefighters: usability and pilot study protocol

Hershey,

Bouziani,

Chen

et al. 2023

Front. Endocrinol.

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show abstract

“…Although little is known regarding specific nutrient intakes and needs, the general recommendations for the provisions and timing of macro-and micronutrients for firefighters are likely similar to those of the general public and/or recreational athletes. In addition, recent reviews of the literature regarding the relationships between diet and cardiovascular disease risk concluded that the existing evidence suggests firefighters are not meeting dietary guidelines [72,73]. A recent crosssectional study examined the dietary habits of 122 male volunteer firefighters and found the cohort consumed lower daily amounts of fruits and vegetables (2.4 vs. 4.5-5 cups), whole grains (0.8 vs. 6-7 oz), and dietary fiber (16.9 vs. 38 g), and well as higher added sugar intakes, compared to the US recommended daily intakes [74].…”

Section: Physical Health Countermeasure-dietary Intakementioning

confidence: 99%

Firefighter Health: A Narrative Review of Occupational Threats and Countermeasures

Gonzalez,

Lanham,

Martin

et al. 2024

Healthcare

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Structural firefighters are responsible for protecting properties and saving lives during emergency operations. Despite efforts to prepare firefighters for these hazardous occupational demands, the unfortunate reality is that the incidence of health morbidities is increasing within the fire service. Specifically, cardiovascular disease, cancer, and mental health disorders are among the most documented morbidities in firefighters. Pubmed and Google Scholar search engines were used to identify peer-reviewed English language manuscripts that evaluated firefighters’ occupational health threats, allostatic factors associated with their occurrence, and evidence-based strategies to mitigate their impact. This narrative review provides fire departments, practitioners, and researchers with evidence-based practices to enhance firefighters’ health.

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“…Lifestyle plays a crucial role in firefighters' health and disease prevention. Therefore, lifestyle modifications and interventions promoting dietary intervention should be implemented and serve as effective countermeasures for considerably reducing the risk of various firefighting-associated cancers [57]. Concerning nutrition, Yang and colleagues who assessed 3172 career firefighters' diet practices reported that most firefighters do not currently follow any specific dietary plan (71%) and feel that they receive insufficient nutrition information (68%); meanwhile, most are interested in learning more about healthy eating (75%) [58].…”

Section: Lifestyle Factorsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Cancer and Potential Prevention with Lifestyle among Career Firefighters: A Narrative Review

Sidossis

Lan

Hershey

et al. 2023

Cancers

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Career firefighters are at considerable risk for chronic diseases, including an increased risk of various cancers, compared to the general population. Over the last two decades, several systematic reviews and large cohort studies have demonstrated that firefighters have statistically significant increases in overall and site-specific cancer incidence and site-specific cancer mortality compared to the general population. Exposure assessment and other studies have documented exposures to a variety of carcinogens in fire smoke and within the fire station. Other occupational factors such as shift work, sedentary behavior, and the fire service food culture may also contribute to this working population’s increased cancer risk. Furthermore, obesity and other lifestyle behaviors such as tobacco use, excessive alcohol consumption, poor diet, inadequate physical activity, and short sleep duration have also been associated with an increased risk of certain firefighting-associated cancers. Putative prevention strategies are proposed based on suspected occupational and lifestyle risk factors.

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The Relationship Between Dietary Intake and Dietary-Focused Lifestyle Interventions on Risk Factors Associated with Cardiovascular Disease in Firefighters

Cited by 5 publications

References 55 publications

Surviving & Thriving; a healthy lifestyle app for new US firefighters: usability and pilot study protocol

Surviving & Thriving; a healthy lifestyle app for new US firefighters: usability and pilot study protocol

Firefighter Health: A Narrative Review of Occupational Threats and Countermeasures

Cancer and Potential Prevention with Lifestyle among Career Firefighters: A Narrative Review

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