A Comparative Study of Physical Health among Office and Technical Workers in Y Combined Cycle Power Plant in Korea

• Published in: Toxicology and environmental health sciences 2018-12, Vol.10 (5), p.245-252
• Main Authors: Lee, Lim-Kyu, Yang, Seung-Min, Park, Jaehong, Kim, Junghwan
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Biomedical and Life Sciences; Biomedicine; Body composition; Body fat; Body mass; Body mass index; Body size; Cardiovascular diseases; Combined cycle power generation; Comparative studies; Correlation analysis; Electric power generation; Environmental Health; Health risks; Muscles; Night shifts; Occupational health; Original Article; Pharmacology/Toxicology; Physical examinations; Power plants; Risk analysis; Risk factors; Skeletal muscle; Statistical analysis; Workers
• ISSN: 2005-9752; 2233-7784
• DOI: 10.1007/s13530-018-0372-2

Objective It is well known that workers’ health conditions are affected by their job characteristics and working environments. The objective of this study was to compare the physical health characteristics of office workers, day shift technical workers, and night shift technical workers. Methods Risk of cardiovascular disease was evaluated in three stages according to main risk factors for all 100 participants. Various health measures were analyzed across the three groups. Physical examinations and personal surveys were used to improve the reliability of data. The body composition of a subset of 34 workers was analyzed using the InBody instrument. Results There was a statistically significant difference in triglyceride levels among the three types of workers (office: 130 mg/dL vs. technical day: 123 mg/dL vs. technical night: 166 mg/dL). Most workers scored a normal cardiovascular risk grade (office: 86% vs. technical day: 91% vs. technical night: 92%). Mean body mass index was consistent across the three groups, at 24 for office and technical day workers and 25 for technical night workers. In correlation analysis of select body composition measures, soft lean mass and skeletal muscle mass were positively correlated. Body fat mass and physical development score were negatively correlated. Conclusion Even though Y plant has made efforts to improve workers’ health, these study results suggest that additional approaches are important to improve health and safety in the future.