Environmental Influences on Food Addiction and Cardiometabolic Profiles in Law Enforcement Officers

Area of Science:

• Occupational Health
• Environmental Health
• Cardiovascular Disease Research

Background:

• Law enforcement officers face significant occupational stressors.
• These stressors increase vulnerability to food addiction and cardiovascular disease (CVD).
• Local environmental factors may exacerbate these health risks.

Purpose of the Study:

• To examine associations between county-level environmental factors, food addiction, and cardiometabolic profiles in North Carolina law enforcement officers.
• To investigate how food environments influence food addiction and CVD risk in this population.

Main Methods:

• 330 law enforcement officers completed the Yale Food Addiction Scale 2.0.
• Assessments included anthropometrics, blood pressure, blood lipids, and glucose.
• County-level data on Food Environment Index (FEI) scores, food outlets, recreation facilities, and crime events were analyzed alongside officer data using regression models.

Main Results:

• Rural counties exhibited significantly poorer FEI scores compared to suburban and urban counties.
• Rural officers reported the highest prevalence of food addiction symptoms.
• Lower FEI scores correlated with increased food addiction symptoms, which were associated with higher adiposity and lower triglyceride levels.

Conclusions:

• Findings support links between food addiction and CVD risk in law enforcement officers.
• Local food environments appear to influence food addiction prevalence and severity.
• Further research with refined measures is warranted to confirm these associations.