Hábitos alimentares, estado nutricional e uso de psicoestimulantes por caminhoneiros que trafegam pela PR 182 - km 76

Abstract

This study aims to verify the particularities of the trucker profession, such as hours of work, traveling days, nighttime rest periods, eating habits, anthropometric evaluation, use of stimulant substances, and how these habits interfere in the quality of life of truck driver’s travelings through highway PR 182 - Km 76. This was an observational study, covering a sample of 107 professional men carrying loads. Each truck driver was individually approached at a fuel station located on the highway mentioned in order to respond to an anamnesis and a quality of life questionnaire, as well as to collect their weights and Heights for calculation of body mass index. The drivers were adults (42 IIQ 14 years old), who drove about 13 hours a day, traveled for work during 10 days, 63.3% of them had meals daily in restaurants and 88.8% were overweight. The prevalence of the use of psychostimulant substances to meet theshort freight deadlines was 23.4%, and 75.7% knew other truckers who were users. When responding to the quality of life questionnaire, 59.8% of the truckers stated that they had a good quality of life. Moreover, it was significant the amount of working hours of truck drivers, irregular eating habits, overweight and the use of stimulants, an fact which is adverse considering the high percentage of truck drivers who rated their quality of life as a good one. Thus, he research concluded that there is a need for guidance, public policy and effective inspection to this category, for improvements in the routine of truck drivers.