Eating Healthy at Work

Making healthy choices can be difficult since many foods and drinks are sold or available in the workplace. Most people will eat a meal and have multiple snacks and drinks throughout their work day. These options can influence your eating habits in both positive and negative ways. The food choices you make at work can impact your overall health. It matters.

New Canadian Food Guide gives you great ideas on how to make healthy choices

• Plan ahead: Include your meals and snacks for work in your meal plan. Knowing what you’re going to eat at work and preparing some of the items ahead of time is helpful. It can save you time and keep you organized, even on busy days.
• Keep healthy foods available: The foods you have available are the foods you are most likely to eat. Even if you plan ahead, you may forget to pack something to eat or not pack enough some days. Keep a small amount of healthy foods available at work. Nuts and seeds, such as almonds and cashews, fruit with a longer shelf life, such as apples, are very good and easy choices.
• Get creative: You may not have a fridge or space to prepare a meal at work, which can limit your meal options. Bring a small cooler bag or ice pack with you instead to keep fresh foods cold.
• Think about your drink: Having a specialty coffee or tea to start your shift or during your break can be a nice treat. However, many specialty drinks contain high amounts of sodium, sugars or saturated fat. Instead of these drinks, try: water flavoured with fruit or fresh herbs, or plain coffee, with a sprinkle of cinnamon, or unsweetened herbal teas, either hot or over ice.
• Choose healthier menu options: If you eat at your work’s cafeteria, remember to follow the healthy eating recommendation to help you make a healthy choice when eating out. Many people think of eating out as a treat. However, if you do it often enough it’s important to think about how it fits into your eating pattern.
• Take time to eat: If possible, eat your meal away from your desk or place of work. This can help ensure you take the time to eat and are able to focus on your meal. Ask a co-worker to join you and eat together to make it more enjoyable.
• Be mindful of your schedule: Shift work often means you work at different hours of the day or overnight. This can impact your eating and sleeping patterns, especially if your shift schedule changes from week to week. As a result, you may find it difficult to make healthy food choices. Think about your work schedule and plan when you can have regular meals and snacks throughout the day.

What you eat on a regular basis matters for your health.

• Choose foods that have little to no added sodium, sugars or saturated fat.
• Compare the nutrition facts table on foods to choose products that are lower in sodium, sugars or saturated fat.

Source: https://food-guide.canada.ca/en/tips-for-healthy-eating/work/