Workplace Staff Canteen is Associated with Lower Blood Pressure among Industry Workers

Purpose A staff canteen in the workplace can offer a healthier diet, which may lower the blood pressure (BP). The purpose of this paper is to evaluate whether the presence of staff canteen in the workplace is associated with consumption of healthy food and lower systolic and diastolic BP. Design/methodology/approach A cross-sectional study was conducted, randomly selecting workers through a multistage sampling, stratified by company size in Brazil. Demographic, socioeconomic, and life style characteristics were evaluated, and weight, height, and BP were measured. Statistical analysis used generalized linear models, controlling for design effect and confounding factors, to assess the association between BP and staff canteen and the intake of food items. Findings In total, 4.818 workers, aged 35.4±10.7 years, 76.5 percent men, with 8.7±4.1 years of formal education were enrolled. Prevalence of hypertension was 24.7 percent (p-value <0.001) among workers from industries with staff canteen vs 30.6 percent among those with no staff canteen. Workers of industries with staff canteen consumed higher proportion of fruits, green leafy vegetables, and milk than workers of industries without canteen, and had lower systolic and diastolic BP, independently of the frequency of intake. Practical implications Workers of industries with staff canteen consumed a healthier diet, and had lower systolic and diastolic BP, and lower prevalence of hypertension than workers from workplaces without staff canteen. Originality/value This study was the first carried out among workers of industries reporting that the presence of a staff canteen in the workplace is associated with lower systolic and diastolic BP and prevalence of hypertension.