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Tobacco use cessation and weight management among motor freight workers: results of the gear up for health study

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Abstract

Objectives

To present the results of a study of a worksite-based intervention to promote tobacco use cessation and improve weight management among motor freight workers.

Methods

This study used a pre-test/post-test, non-randomized design to assess the effectiveness of a four-month intervention that addressed the social context of the work setting. We evaluated 7-day tobacco quit prevalence among baseline tobacco users, and successful weight management, defined as no weight gain in workers with BMI <25 at baseline and any weight loss among overweight and obese workers.

Results

At baseline, 40% were current tobacco users, and 88% had a BMI of 25 or greater. Of 542 workers invited to participate, 227 agreed to participate and received at least the first telephone call (42%). Ten-month post-baseline, baseline tobacco users who participated in the intervention were more likely to have quit using tobacco than non-participants: 23.8% vs. 9.1% (p = 0.02). There was no significant improvement in weight management.

Conclusions

Incorporating work experiences and job conditions into messages of health behavior change resulted in significant tobacco use cessation among participating motor freight workers.

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Acknowledgments

This work would not have been possible without the contributions of the members and leaders of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters and the Motor Freight Carriers Association, and the terminals participating in this study. The authors thank Elizabeth Barbeau, Elizabeth Barna, Linnea Benson, Lamont Byrd, Joshua Gagne, Kerry Kokkinogenis, Timothy Lynch, Ruth Lederman, and Michael Massagli for their contributions to this study and to the development of this manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Center for Community-Based Research, Dana-Faber Cancer Institute, 44 Binney Street, Boston, MA, 02115, USA

    Glorian Sorensen, Lisa Quintiliani, Eve Nagler, Lesley Pereira & Lorraine Wallace

  2. Department of Society, Human Development and Health, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA

    Glorian Sorensen, Lisa Quintiliani & Eve Nagler

  3. New England Research Institutes, Watertown, MA, USA

    Anne Stoddard & May Yang

  4. Boston Medical Center, Boston University, Boston, MA, USA

    Lisa Quintiliani

  5. Children’s Hospital, Boston, MA, USA

    Cara Ebbeling

Authors
  1. Glorian Sorensen
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  2. Anne Stoddard
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  3. Lisa Quintiliani
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  4. Cara Ebbeling
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  5. Eve Nagler
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  6. May Yang
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  7. Lesley Pereira
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  8. Lorraine Wallace
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Glorian Sorensen.

Additional information

This work was conducted with the support of a grant from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (grant number 5 R01 DP000099-03 to G.S.) and grants from the National Institutes of Health (grant numbers 5 K05 CA108663 and 2 R25 CA057713 to G.S.).

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Sorensen, G., Stoddard, A., Quintiliani, L. et al. Tobacco use cessation and weight management among motor freight workers: results of the gear up for health study. Cancer Causes Control 21, 2113–2122 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10552-010-9630-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10552-010-9630-6

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