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  • Original Article
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Association between occupational psychosocial factors and waist circumference is modified by diet among men

European Journal of Clinical Nutrition volume 69, pages 1053–1059 (2015)Cite this article

Subjects

Abstract

Background/Objectives:

Occupational psychosocial stress has been identified as a risk factor for obesity, whereas dietary habits have a key role in weight control. We examined whether dietary habits modify the association between occupational psychosocial factors and waist circumference.

Subjects/Methods:

Data comprised 31-year-old men (n=2222) and women (n=2053) in the Northern Finland Birth Cohort 1966. Waist circumference was measured and data on occupational psychosocial factors (demands, control and social support) and other characteristics were obtained through questionnaires. Healthy and unhealthy diet indices were constructed according to the current dietary guidelines. Associations were examined using analysis of variance adjusted for body mass index at age 14, basic education level, leisure-time physical activity, alcohol consumption, smoking, stress-related eating behaviour and parity.

Results:

Among men, high job demands and high job control were associated with greater waist circumferences, and there were interactions between unhealthy diet and job demands (P=0.043) and job control (P=0.036) in relation to waist circumference. The waist of men with high demands or high control and low consumption of unhealthy foods (red/processed meat, hamburgers and pizzas, fried potatoes, sugar-sweetened soft drinks and white bread) was smaller than that of men with high demands or high control and high consumption of such foods. No associations were found among women.

Conclusions:

A diet based on the current dietary guidelines seems to cancel out the adverse effects of occupational psychosocial factors on waist circumference among young men. Longitudinal studies are needed to assess the risks for obesity-related diseases arising from psychosocial work environments and dietary habits.

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Acknowledgements

The study was supported by the SalWe Research Programme for Mind and Body (Tekes – the Finnish Funding Agency for Technology and Innovation grant 1104/10) and by EurHEALTHAgeing grant 277849 (M-R Järvelin). We thank the late Professor Paula Rantakallio for the initiation of the Northern Finland Birth Cohort study project.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Finnish Institute of Occupational Health, Helsinki, Finland

    A Jääskeläinen, L Kaila-Kangas, P Leino-Arjas, M-L Lindbohm, N Nevanperä, J Remes & J Laitinen

  2. Biocenter Oulu, University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland

    M-R Järvelin

  3. Institute of Health Sciences, University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland

    M-R Järvelin

  4. National Institute for Health and Welfare, Oulu, Finland

    M-R Järvelin

  5. Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Faculty of Medicine, Imperial College London, London, UK

    M-R Järvelin

  6. MRC Health Protection Agency (HPA) Centre for Environment and Health, Imperial College London, London, UK

    M-R Järvelin

  7. Unit of Primary Care, Oulu University Hospital, Oulu, Finland

    M-R Järvelin

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  1. A Jääskeläinen
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  2. L Kaila-Kangas
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Correspondence to A Jääskeläinen.

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Jääskeläinen, A., Kaila-Kangas, L., Leino-Arjas, P. et al. Association between occupational psychosocial factors and waist circumference is modified by diet among men. Eur J Clin Nutr 69, 1053–1059 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1038/ejcn.2015.59

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