Fueling Your Workday: Healthy Eating in Any Work Environment
This year’s National Wellness Month focuses on workplace wellness including the vital contribution of good nutrition and healthy food choice. So, whether you're navigating the office break room or working from your kitchen table, maintaining a healthy diet during work hours can be challenging. Deadlines loom, meetings abound, and disruptions take up valuable time leaving you a bit frazzled. In the office, that convenient bag of chips from the vending machine or the donuts in the break room may seem increasingly appealing. At home, it’s easy to be tempted by the leftovers in the fridge or the cookies in the pantry. However, applying the core pillars of a healthy diet and setting up your eating environment to make positive food choice easier can transform how you approach workplace nutrition, supporting your health and boosting both your energy and productivity.
Studies demonstrate that most people consume at least half of their daily intake of calories during work hours. The type and availability of food in the workplace significantly influences what employees eat. At home, the constant access to your kitchen can lead to “grazing” and mindless snacking. The key is not to be rigid or rely on “will power” in food selection, but to do a bit of preplanning and to set up your food environment in such a way to be more likely to make positive food choices most of the time. Doing so doesn’t just promote your overall health, but boosts cognitive performance, helps stabilize mood, augments energy level, and increases productivity.
What constitutes a healthy diet?
The core characteristics of a healthy diet whether within your workday or at home are adequacy, balance, variety, and moderation. Adequacy refers to a diet that supplies the calories and essential nutrients you need each day for your body to function at its best and to supply your cells with the energy and nutrients they need to do their jobs. Many Americans fall short on critical nutrients like vitamin D, potassium, fiber, calcium, and iron – which can not only impact body processes but increase risk of chronic disease. While not always easy or convenient when we’re busy and our choices are limited, emphasizing nutrient-dense foods at meals and snacks goes a long way in getting adequate amounts of essential nutrients.
Balance involves consuming foods from across all the food groups and across the macronutrients (carbohydrates, protein, and fats) in appropriate proportions. Variety means choosing different foods within the food groups – not just eating apples for example, but switching up fruit choices to berries, melon, citrus, and others. The more varied your food choices, the more likely you are to get a broad range of essential nutrients and other dietary components. Variety in protein foods is important for our health – not relying solely on animal foods, but incorporating plant-based proteins through beans, legumes, tofu, and the like. Moderation comes into play in portion control and not overindulging in any one type of food, particularly foods that are energy-dense which are often high in added sugars, unhealthy fats, and sodium.
How do you set up a food environment that makes healthy eating convenient and appealing?
The impact of our food environment is powerful, whether in the office or at home where you may be working remotely. Readily accessible sweet and salty snacks in our workspace or within easy reach make it easy to overeat, often rather mindlessly as we focus on work rather than the food itself. One study found that the location of candy in an office made a big impact on amount consumed. A bowl of jellybeans was placed on top of workers’ desks, in desk drawers, on a counter in the work area, and in a break room. It’s no surprise that more jellybeans were eaten if the bowl was plain sight and within reach on someone’s desk versus having to get up and walk across the room (less accessible and in front of others) to the candy bowl on the counter or to the break room. Even placing the candy bowl out of sight in the desk drawer resulted in fewer jellybeans consumed.
At work, a bit of preplanning can go a long way. If you go out with coworkers for lunch, consider restaurants that serve a variety of foods, so you don’t have to always turn to a burger and fries. Most workplace cafeterias offer an array of choices that can fit within a healthy diet. Packing your own meal is always a nice option whether it be leftovers or food you’ve prepared in advance. Consider balance and variety across food groups as you pack a meal or snack.
At home, keeping work and eating spaces separate can help establish boundaries between work and nourishment time. Stock your fridge with pre-washed veggies for snacking alongside hummus or cottage cheese. Opt for higher fiber snacks with some protein to help fill you up and keep you satisfied for longer. While chips, pretzels, and crackers are convenient to grab, they don’t do much to quell the appetite and it’s easy to keep reaching for more. It is advisable to pre-portion a small serving in a baggy when you crave something crunchy and salty as you can lose track of how much is eaten out of a large bag or box. You don’t have to maintain a “purist” food environment at home, but putting healthier, less-energy dense foods at the forefront of your pantry and refrigerator can help offset impulsive grab and go moments. For mealtimes at home, take the time to leave your workspace and focus on the food, not just quickly eating while you are at your computer.
Healthy eating in the workplace isn't about perfection—it's about making choices that support your well-being and work performance. By understanding and applying the principles of adequacy, balance, variety, and moderation to your specific work environment, you can create sustainable habits that fuel both your career and your health.
