Diet and Exercise Options – Long-Haul Truck Drivers
Diet and Exercise Options
Healthy food options and the opportunity to exercise may be limited on the road. We visited 16 truck stops across the United States and evaluated them based on a checklist to gauge how well truck stops support a healthy lifestyle for long-haul truckers. The checklist recorded resources found in a truck stop, including:
- Full-service or fast food restaurants onsite or nearby
- Truck-accessible groceries nearby
- Walking paths or designated exercise areas
- Parking in areas limited to trucks and parking areas with good lighting
- On-site healthcare clinics, or clinics that were truck-accessible nearby
- Showers, laundry, drivers’ lounge, barber or hair salon, truck hookups, and motel/hotel onsite or nearby
- Wireless internet connections or internet kiosks
What diet and exercise problems did we find?
Most truck stops did not provide an overall healthy living environment. While most truck stops we looked at had showers and laundries, motels/hotels, a driver’s lounge, and a full-service restaurant or fast food, there were few healthy food choices and few options for physical activity.
Healthy food was available at most of the truck stop restaurants, though 25% of those we visited did not offer a healthy meat and a healthy vegetarian option. Among the convenient stores, almost 20% offered no healthy food options, including snacks.
None of the truck stops visited offered exercise facilities and 81% lacked a walking path. More than half of the truck stops we visited had poorly lit parking areas, which may deter truck drivers from exercising around the parking area.
Related Study Publications
For more details on the study and results, please see the journal articles, or contact us as eidinfo@cdc.gov
A Pilot Study of Healthy Living Options at 16 Truck Stops Across the United Statesexternal icon
References
[1] Layne DM, Rogers B, Randolph SA [2009]. Health and gender comparisons in the long-haul trucking industry: A pilot studyexternal icon AAOHN J. 57(10): 405-413.
[2] Solomon AJ, Doucette JT, Garland E, McGinn T [2004]. Healthcare and the long haul: Long distance truck drivers – a medically underserved populations.external icon Am J Ind Med 46(5): 463-471.
