P090 How do Australian Shiftworkers and Non-Shiftworkers Prioritise Sleep, Diet, and Physical activity?

Abstract

Abstract Background Increasing engagement with sleep, diet, and physical activity (PA) is critical for populations who are at higher risk of poor health, such as shiftworkers. To increase engagement in sleep, diet and PA, it is critical to first understand which of these behaviours Australians currently prioritise and whether this prioritisation relates to actual behaviour. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate how Australians prioritise sleep, diet and PA. Methods A cohort of 1151 Australian adults (54% female, aged 18-65 years) completed a phone interview, and a cohort of 588 Australian shiftwork-only adults (76% female, 18-72 years) completed an online survey. All participants were asked which health behaviour (sleep, diet or PA) they prioritised. Behavioural correlates of sleep, diet, and PA, and questions on shiftwork experience were also collected. Results Diet was prioritised by the adults (49%), whereas sleep was prioritised by the shiftwork-only sample (68%). Multinomial logistic regressions revealed that adults who prioritised diet were significantly more likely to report less fast-food consumption (p<0.002) and more fruit consumption (p<0.002) compared to those that prioritised sleep. For the shiftwork-only sample, those with 16-30 years of shiftwork experience were significantly more likely to prioritise sleep compared to diet (p<0.05). Conclusions While prioritising diet was associated with healthier diet behaviour in Australian adults, overall, across both cohorts, behaviour prioritisation did not relate to actual behaviour. This suggests that there are factors other than behaviour prioritisation that influence engagement in healthy behaviours. These factors, such as workplace barriers, should be the focus of future research.