Investigating obesity among professional drivers: The high risk professional driver study

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study is to detect the main individual and transportation factors associated with obesity and its prevalence among Italian professional drivers (PDs). METHODS: We performed a cross-sectional questionnaire survey. Data from PDs (n = 497) were used for analyses. RESULTS: Sixty-one percent of participants were either overweight or obese according to their body mass index. Predictive factors for obesity were traveling more than 40,000 miles per year (odds ratio [OR] 4.20, confidence interval [CI] 1.41-12.56) and hours spent behind the wheel per day (OR 1.27, CI 1.02-1.58). Bus drivers had half the risk of being obese compared to truck drivers (OR 0.45, CI 0.23-0.87). An inverse association was detected between educational attainment and obesity (OR 0.32, CI 0.11-0.90). CONCLUSIONS: PDs with high number of driving hours per day, miles driven per year, and low educational level should be subject to special educational programs to reduce and prevent obesity.