Interrelationships between nursing workers' state of nutrition, socio demographic factors, work and health habits

The interrelationships between professional nursing workers' state of nutrition, variables relating to their socio demographic relationships, their professional work, and health behavior, were examined based on a correspondence analysis technique. This is a sectional study carried out involving 917 nursing professionals in a public hospital in Rio de Janeiro. The results show the formation of four groups, three of them grouped under BMI (body mass index) categories. The obese individuals group included poor health, current socio economic conditions, unfavorable past conditions, and former night shift workers. The low/adequate group showed the most favorable conditions, while the group of overweight individuals also included smoking, alcohol consumption, and current night shift work (up to five nights per two-week period). Specifically, among the interrelationships between the states of nutrition levels, we highlight those relating to current and previously evaluated socio economic conditions, and underscore the life-long importance of social indicators.