One Health Approach to Nutritional Status and Well-Being in Food Supply Chain Workers: A Study Protocol

Area of Science:

• Occupational Health
• Public Health
• Nutritional Science

Background:

• The Italian agri-food sector faces significant economic contributions alongside high rates of occupational injuries and musculoskeletal disorders.
• Repetitive manual handling and biomechanical overload necessitate a system-level, prevention-focused assessment strategy.
• Existing assessments often lack a holistic view of worker well-being within the supply chain.

Purpose of the Study:

• To implement a harmonized One Health approach for the multidimensional evaluation of food supply chain workers.
• To integrate bioelectrical impedance vector analysis (BIVA), nutritional, psychological, and biomarker data for a comprehensive worker assessment.
• To compare health profiles of active workers with sedentary individuals and inform preventive strategies.

Main Methods:

• Utilizing bioelectrical impedance vector analysis (BIVA) for body composition assessment.
• Incorporating nutritional parameters, quality-of-life surveys, and psychological measures.
• Measuring systemic oxidative stress and serotonin levels to evaluate overall health status.
• Comparing data from active agri-food workers against a control group of sedentary individuals.

Main Results:

• The study aims to identify differences in BIVA profiles between active workers and sedentary individuals.
• It will examine how nutritional, psychological, and biomarker indicators correlate with worker well-being.
• Expected findings will highlight specific risk factors and protective elements within the agri-food work environment.

Conclusions:

• An integrated One Health approach can provide a multidimensional framework for assessing food supply chain worker health.
• This protocol facilitates the development of targeted preventive and educational strategies.
• Findings will inform evidence-based occupational and public health policies to improve worker well-being in the agri-food sector.