Does shift work influence healthy eating habits among university students?

Literature review:

In many services and industries shift work is very common. It allows maintaining productivity and improving competitiveness (Antunes et al. 2010). However, it is
widely considered that shift work has many negative impacts on individuals’ health and well-being. Many researchers have found that shift work plays an important role
in altering people’s eating habits/pattern. Fonken et al. (2010, p. 18664 ) argue that shift work forces people to go against the biological clock, which has many
negative implications for health. Similarly, Heath et al (2011) suggest that while shift workers face sleep disturbance due to circadian disruption (related to
biological rhythm), the main problem caused by shift work to health is due to change in eating/snacking behaviour. The aim of the current study is to understand the
influence of shift work on university students’ healthy eating habits. This is an important area of research as many students do part –time work and in most cases they
are engaged in shift work. Particularly, university students work night shifts since during the day time they have classes. Accordingly, a review of current literature
is important to obtain a deeper understanding of the topic.

According to Antunes et al. (2010, a large number of epidemiological studies have found that many modern diseases/health disorders such as diabetes, being overweight
and obesity are related to shift work. In addition to a weak sleep pattern, shift work alters people’s eating habits. For instance, night workers often eat during
their working hours that causes internal resynchronisation as during a day shift they need to adapt a new schedule, such as new eating routine or a new sleeping
pattern (Antunes et al. 2010, p. 158).

Lowden et al. (2010, ) claim that shift work affects both the timing of eating as well as the quality of one’s diet. For example, a shift worker may often skip
breakfast or may decide to fast. Also, nutritious foods may not be available while working in night shifts, which mean they might eat unhealthy junk foods that may
impair metabolism (Lowden et al. 2010, p.150). Moreover, since shift workers are likely to undergo sleep disturbance, stress and fatigue, they may not have enough
energy to think about or make choice regarding healthy and nutritious foods.

Morikawa et al. (2007, ) has studied the impact of shift work on Japanese workers and found that night-shift workers have more body mass index (BMI) than day-shift
workers since metabolic disturbances caused by poor eating habits are more common among night-shift workers. They have also found that night-shift workers have
comparatively more calorie consumption as they are likely to eat more cold and fast food than day-time workers. On the other hand, in a study about nutrition intake of
shift workers, Morikawa et al. (2008, p. 270) have found that shift workers rather prefer to nibble rather than having a complete meal, which means this habit may
either increase nutrient intake or decrease nutrient intake (depends on the type of foods). Also, shift workers may lose appetite and become reluctant in preparing
meals as shift work make it difficult to adjust with family and social lives (Morikawa et al. (2008, p. 276).

Finally, Zhao and Turner (2008) Zhao et al. (2011) have also found an association between shift work, unhealthy eating habits and negative health outcomes, such as
overweight, diabetes, cardiovascular diseases and diabetes.

While this literature review provides important information about the link between shift work and unhealthy eating habits, however there is no study about how shift
work affects university students’ healthy eating habits. Therefore, this research will address the research question ‘Does shift work influence healthy eating habits
among university students?’

A good research question needs some theoretical orientation. Therefore, it will be useful to use the theory of planned behaviour while exploring the research question.
Theory of planned behaviour was introduced by Icek Ajen which is widely used in health research (BUSPH 2013. It links individuals’ beliefs with their behaviour. The
theory assumes that a person’s particular behavior is shaped by his/her behavioral intentions; however, behavioral intentions are linked to his/her attitude (positive
or negative feelings) towards that particular behavior as well as subjective norms (Ajzen 2011).

The hypotheses of the study are as follows:
H 1: University students who do shift work will be unable to eat timely more often in a week than will those who do not do shift work.

H 2: University students who do shift work will eat out more times in a week than will those who do not do shift work.

H 3: University students who do shift work will consume junk foods more times in a week than will those who do not do shift work.

H 4: University students who do shift work will eat less fruits and vegetables daily than will those who do not do shift work.

References:

Ajzen, I 2011, ‘Theory of planned behavior’, Handb Theor Soc Psychol Vol One, vol. 1, p. 438, viewed 6 March 2015, < https://books.google.com.au/books?
hl=en&lr=&id=1s-tMyL-amcC&oi=fnd&pg=PA438&dq=theory+of+Planned+Behaviour%27&ots=9VO4mIrtdy&sig=VgZi2hu5UCG-dmbmz0RhHPqsR9s#v=onepage&q=theory%20of%20Planned
%20Behaviour’&f=false>.
BUSPH 2013, ‘Behavioral Change Models; The Theory of Planned Behaviour’, Boston University School of Public Health , viewed 6 August 2015,
<http://sphweb.bumc.bu.edu/otlt/MPH-Modules/SB/SB721-Models/SB721-Models3.html>.
Antunes, L, Levandovski, R, Dantas, G, Caumo, W & Hidalgo, M 2010, ‘Obesity and shift work: chronobiological aspects’, Nutrition research reviews, vol. 23, no. 01, pp.
155-168.
Fonken, LK, Workman, JL, Walton, JC, Weil, ZM, Morris, JS, Haim, A & Nelson, RJ 2010, ‘Light at night increases body mass by shifting the time of food intake’,
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, vol. 107, no. 43, pp. 18664-18669.
Heath, G, Roach, GD, Dorrian, J, Ferguson, SA, Darwent, D & Sargent, C 2012, ‘The effect of sleep restriction on snacking behaviour during a week of simulated
shiftwork’, Accident Analysis & Prevention, vol. 45, pp. 62-67.
Lowden, A, Moreno, C, Holmbäck, U, Lennernäs, M & Tucker, P 2010, ‘Eating and shift work—effects on habits, metabolism, and performance’, Scandinavian journal of work,
environment & health, pp. 150-162.
Morikawa, Y, Nakagawa, H, Miura, K, Soyama, Y, Ishizaki, M, Kido, T, Naruse, Y, Suwazono, Y & Nogawa, K 2007, ‘Effect of shift work on body mass index and metabolic
parameters’, Scandinavian journal of work, environment & health, pp. 45-50.
Morikawa, Y, Miura, K, Sasaki, S, Yoshita, K, Yoneyama, S, Sakurai, M, Ishizaki, M, Kido, T, Naruse, Y & Suwazono, Y 2008, ‘Evaluation of the effects of shift work on
nutrient intake: a cross-sectional study’, Journal of occupational health, vol. 50, no. 3, pp. 270-278.
Zhao, I, Bogossian, F, Song, S & Turner, C 2011, ‘The association between shift work and unhealthy weight: a cross-sectional analysis from the Nurses and Midwives’e-
cohort Study’, Journal of occupational and environmental medicine, vol. 53, no. 2, pp. 153-158.
Zhao, I & Turner, C 2008, ‘The impact of shift work on people’s daily health habits and adverse health outcomes’, Australian Journal of Advanced Nursing, vol. 25, no.
3, pp. 8-22.

Hi Fawaz,
This is a really great start. You have done a great job. Please see my comments throughout. Your final report would be strengthened by some more critical disucssion of
the research you refer to. Also, can you identify any other gaps in current knowledge? You could also go deeper with your application of the theory. Well done 
Looking forward to seeing your findings.

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