Family stress and behavioral risk factors for cardiovascular disease in men working on expeditionary duty

Global trends in reducing cardiovascular mortality in the second decade of the 21st century, demonstrated by a number of studies, highlight another phenomenon – the increase in the prevalence of psychosocial risk factors for cardiovascular diseases, and in particular, such a factor of chronic social stress as stress in the family. The obtained relationships between the prevalence of stress in the family with the mobile nature of work and behavioral characteristics, depending on the length of service in the oil and gas industry of the Arctic territories of Russia, seem necessary to use for the formation of a comprehensive program for the primary prevention of cardiovascular diseases.

Aim: To determine of associations between the prevalence of stress in the family and some parameters of attitudes towards smoking, nutrition, and physical activity depending on length of service among those working on expeditionary shifts in the Arctic.

Material and Methods. The study subjects were men aged 25–54 years working in the expeditionary shift mode at the industrial enterprise EURACOR, the sample consisted of 750 people, the response rate was 82.4%. The WHO MONICA-MOPSY questionnaire was used to determine stress in the family, attitudes towards smoking, nutrition, and physical activity.

Results. Regardless of length of service on an expeditionary watch, in the presence of family stress, an increase in the intensity of tobacco smoking was found among men aged 25–54 years; with an increase in work experience up to nine years, a tendency towards a decrease in the proportion of people who quit smoking was determined; with experience of ten years or more, a decrease in attempts to quit smoking was determined. With 10 years or more of experience in expeditionary watch mode and the presence of stress in the family, tendencies towards diet violations and unsuccessful attempts to adhere to it were identified. With more than three years of experience, among men 25–54 years old with stress in the family, a decrease in physical activity and a decrease in assessment of their physical activity compared with peers were found.

Conclusion. An analysis of the definition of stress in the family, its associations with the attitude of shift workers to smoking, nutrition and physical activity depending on the length of service of the expedition shift, can be a fundamental element of the scientific position in the formation of a program for the primary prevention of cardiovascular diseases in the Arctic.

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