The working curve which impacts on what we eat

By Caroline Innes on Dec 23, 08 07:39 PM

NEW research has revealed how work pressure is adversely influencing our eating habits.

It found that workers begin Monday mornings full of good intentions for the week ahead but as stress and exhaustion rise throughout the week our healthy diets fly out of the window.

The survey of UK worker's eating habits revealed a clear "indulgence curve" with more than 44% of workers confessing to a decline in their attitude to healthy eating as the working week progresses.

The "curve" begins to establish itself on Tuesday, with the research showing that by Friday the number of people admitting to eating more unhealthily rises by 30%.

The "curve" also happens throughout the working day, as early-morning good intentions fade by 4pm when almost a third of people are snacking, often unhealthily.

It is an understandable reaction to a busy workplace but again puts our relationship with food under the spotlight.

With working patterns increasingly dictating how we eat, the impact of this "curve" on our overall diet is considerable.

A large proportion of our calorific in-take is now consumed during the working day - over 85% of us believe that half of our daily calories are eaten in the workplace.

The real figure may be even higher as 56% admit to eating lunch at our desk, 21% eating "deskfast" and a surprising 8% eating dinner there also.

Geoff Beattie, psychologist, said: "This changing pattern of eating will have significant consequences on the psychological functioning of the entire workforce but is itself partly attributable to the stress that many UK workers find themselves under.

"Stress can significantly affect the amount of food eaten and actual food choice with people moving away from healthy low fat foods (such as fruit) to much less healthy high fat options (like chocolate or other high fat snacks).

"The reason that people choose these foods is to feel better; it is, in effect, a form of self-medication."

If we are aware of our behaviour during the working week, we can try and manage our reactions to stress better.

Instead of reaching for that bar of chocolate or grabbing an unhealthy snack from the vending machine to lift our spirits we should plan ahead to best manage those cravings.
Food is often an emotional crutch and we must realise that to truly understand why we are eating and when we turn to those sugary options for comfort.