Is your caffeinated cola really for road travel awareness, or is it simply a ritual? Most people may think of warnings about soda ingestion a no-brainer or a non-starter, but the fact that the sweet syrup exacerbates so many of the health problems currently plaguing the transportation industry should make it worth another look.
Maybe the news that it doesn’t matter whether it’s HFCS-infused regular or zero-calorie diet soda that cause
The study looked at more than 6,000 healthy people, who showed no signs of metabolic syndrome, and then followed up. After four years, 53 percent of people who drank an average of one or more soft drinks per day developed metabolic syndrome. Those who drank one or more diet soft drinks a day were at a 44 percent higher risk.
Doctors who treat truck drivers know that getting people who spend a lot of time alone and who have sedentary lifestyles can be hard to “re-train” toward new, healthier habits. Noted addiction specialist Dr. Harold Urschel says, “You can get into a situation where you crave a soda by conditioning yourself,” Dr. Urschel says. “[If] you stop for gas and always get a diet soda, the craving will start to come first, before you even pull into the station.” That can spell danger for truckers who don’t have people along for the ride who can help them stay focused on maintaining healthy habits.
Now transportation carriers, industry organizations and even truck stops are unrolling initiatives to help truckers slim down, shape up and improve their health. Employers are holding health seminars, building on-site gyms, bringing in nutritionists and fitness trainers, and offering financial incentives to employees who stop smoking or lose weight. Some drivers are cooking in their rigs, walking or bike riding around truck stops, blogging about their experiences at sites like truckingsolutionsgroup.org and safetythruwellness.com, and communicating with other truckers about their successes.