Working at night can increase the risk of many diseases due to altered sleeping and eating patterns. There are some emergency services where night shifts are unavoidable. The purpose of this research was to examine, how night work affects eating habits and food choices of emergency workers, and to provide simple guidelines for employees that will help them to organize their diet. The survey was conducted on 17 police officers performing patrol work. We used a questionnaire to obtain their subjective assessment of how night shift influences their diet and well-being. We used a 24-hour recall after three different work shifts, to evaluate the quality of their diet relative to current national guidelines. We found no significant differences in energy intake between day and night shifts, but a significant difference in the ratio of macronutrients. Employees consumed a higher percentage of energy from fats and simple sugars during night shifts compared to day shifts and days off work. They reported an increased craving for sweet, fatty, and energy-dense foods in the day after the night shift. Surprisingly, planning and preparation of home-cooked meals for the night shift did not result in more balanced meals. The fact that employees did not meet the guidelines not even on their day shift or day off, demonstrates that there is a general lack of knowledge about the preparation of balanced meals among workers. Furthermore, national guidelines on nutrition during night shift are still missing, so we prepared a short and focused publication with dietary advice for people working at night.
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