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From the journal editor
From the Guest Editor This Journal Supplement has three principal aims: • to summarize and synthesize the state of the art in practice and research for nutrition programs at the worksite; • to serve as a resource and networking guide for nutrition and health education professionals and businesses; and • to stimulate advances in practice and research. It has been both a challenge and a pleasure to serve as Guest Editor for this special supplement to the Journal of Nutrition Education on "Nutrition at the Worksite." It has been a challenge because workplace nutrition activities are developing at a pace that tests the efforts of even the most avid scholar or practitioner. Also, as anyone who has reviewed the options for worksite health promotion programs knows, there is such a panoply of models and approaches for these endeavors, that we cannot present a single simplistic strategy for successful workplace nutrition programs. It has been a pleasure to work on developing this issue because it is an exciting time for both worksite health promotion and nutrition education. Each year brings stronger evidence and consensus among scientists regarding the important role of good nutrition for preventing disease and reducing health risks. Also, in the seven years since I first became involved in worksite health promotion, I have watched as businesses adopt programs of increasing number, variety, and sophistication. It is clear that worksite wellness programs are not a passing fad-they are an employee benefit, a cost containment strategy, and an excellent way to reach working people and their families with health information. Equally important, they offer new opportunities for health and nutrition professionals. However, the greatest pleasure in serving as Guest Editor for this issue has been the opportunity to work alongside many dynamic, committed colleagues. This journal represents the efforts of numerous individuals, many of whom appear as reviewers or authors in the pages of this issue. They are too numerous to mention separately here, but few must be singled out. My editorial assistants, Terri SeewaldKlein, Rickie Orr, and Janet Seay, were responsible for much of the collection and processing of endless quantities of information that went into developing this journal. I am also grateful to my associates at Temple University, especially Dr. Patricia Legos and Jackie Hankins, for their support and tolerance throughout the past year. I am particularly indebted to Laurie Sims, Journal Editor, for her confidence in inviting me to serve as Guest Editor and for her continual support and guidance. Special thanks are due to Barbara Shannon for" coaching" me in the tasks of editing a JNE issue and encouraging me through months of progress. To the many others who have been most generous with their advice and contributions, you know who you are. We are grateful to the Metropolitan Life Foundation for its sponsorship of this special worksite supplement to the Journal of Nutrition Education and hope that it achieves the aims outlined above. We welcome your comments and reactions.
a
Karen Glanz, Department of Health Education, Temple University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Message From SNE President The Society for Nutrition Education is proud to have joined with the Metropolitan Life Foundation to produce this Supplement on the nutrition component of worksite wellness programs. Organizing the worksite as a health proSii
JOURNAL OF NUTRITION EDUCATION
moting environment is not a new concept. It is, however, an idea which has come of age in the 1980's. The rapid growth in the number of worksite wellness programs has produced a demand for nutrition education programs which are responsive to the needs of those men and women who are committed to developing more healthful lifestyles and who, in so doing, are becoming positive role models for friends, family and coworkers. As Guest Editor ofthis Supplement, Dr. Glanz has brought together a series of articles which are convincing evidence of the fact that nutrition education at the worksite can be exciting, enjoyable and effective. I know that readers will join me in applauding those innovators whose work is described in this Supplement. They are leading us to the worksite and demonstrating to the world that healthful lifestyles are good business for everyone. Audrey Maretzki
From the Journal Editor Each of us involved with this Supplement has taken special pride in seeing how it has developed and reached completion. Few of us who initially conceived this project could have imagined the breadth and intensity of nutrition education efforts at worksite settings. Thus we see this Supplement, not only as a description of current nutrition education activities, but also as a document that can be used for many years to come as a conceptual and facilitative tool for understanding nutrition as a component of worksite health promotion efforts. Those interested in the history of nutrition education are aware that nutritionists have long prided themselves on being aware of clients' needs and on delivering services and information appropriate to those needs. We know that applied nutritionists, once considered employable only in public agencies, now have the opportunity to be selfemployed consultants or to be employed in the private sector. It is gratifying to see that the workplace, where the majority of adults spend most of their waking hours, is now a site for the delivery of health and nutrition services as well as a source of employmen,t for nutritionists. We are gratified to see that the field of health promotion through nutrition is growing. We realize that many of these nutrition and weight control programs are coordinated by health professionals other than nutritionists. An important question for the future is, how can nutritionists participate most effectively in health promotion programs at worksite settings? The answer to this question deserves our scholarly review and attention as an item for ongoing evaluation. Though we are pleased with the descriptions of activities in worksite nutrition education, we are concerned with accountability for these efforts. We must be increasingly aware of the need to document and evaluate the outcomes of nutrition interventions in the workplace. Only in this way will we learn from the experiences of others and provide the best possible programs, and only in this way will nutrition be regarded as a cost-effective component of health promotion programs. A very special note of gratitude and thanks is due to Dr. Karen Glanz, who almost single-handedly has seen this project to completion, from its humble beginnings as some isolated notes to a full-featured, comprehensive supplement. Few others could have performed this Herculean task with such enthusiasm and commitment. A very proud Journal Editor salutes Dr. Glanz, and exclaims, .'Thanks for a job well done!" Laura S. Sims VOLUME 18 NUMBER 1
SUPPLEMENT 1986
a
Karen Glanz, Department of Health Education, Temple University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Message From SNE President The Society for Nutrition Education is proud to have joined with the Metropolitan Life Foundation to produce this Supplement on the nutrition component of worksite wellness programs. Organizing the worksite as a health proSii
JOURNAL OF NUTRITION EDUCATION
moting environment is not a new concept. It is, however, an idea which has come of age in the 1980's. The rapid growth in the number of worksite wellness programs has produced a demand for nutrition education programs which are responsive to the needs of those men and women who are committed to developing more healthful lifestyles and who, in so doing, are becoming positive role models for friends, family and coworkers. As Guest Editor ofthis Supplement, Dr. Glanz has brought together a series of articles which are convincing evidence of the fact that nutrition education at the worksite can be exciting, enjoyable and effective. I know that readers will join me in applauding those innovators whose work is described in this Supplement. They are leading us to the worksite and demonstrating to the world that healthful lifestyles are good business for everyone. Audrey Maretzki
From the Journal Editor Each of us involved with this Supplement has taken special pride in seeing how it has developed and reached completion. Few of us who initially conceived this project could have imagined the breadth and intensity of nutrition education efforts at worksite settings. Thus we see this Supplement, not only as a description of current nutrition education activities, but also as a document that can be used for many years to come as a conceptual and facilitative tool for understanding nutrition as a component of worksite health promotion efforts. Those interested in the history of nutrition education are aware that nutritionists have long prided themselves on being aware of clients' needs and on delivering services and information appropriate to those needs. We know that applied nutritionists, once considered employable only in public agencies, now have the opportunity to be selfemployed consultants or to be employed in the private sector. It is gratifying to see that the workplace, where the majority of adults spend most of their waking hours, is now a site for the delivery of health and nutrition services as well as a source of employmen,t for nutritionists. We are gratified to see that the field of health promotion through nutrition is growing. We realize that many of these nutrition and weight control programs are coordinated by health professionals other than nutritionists. An important question for the future is, how can nutritionists participate most effectively in health promotion programs at worksite settings? The answer to this question deserves our scholarly review and attention as an item for ongoing evaluation. Though we are pleased with the descriptions of activities in worksite nutrition education, we are concerned with accountability for these efforts. We must be increasingly aware of the need to document and evaluate the outcomes of nutrition interventions in the workplace. Only in this way will we learn from the experiences of others and provide the best possible programs, and only in this way will nutrition be regarded as a cost-effective component of health promotion programs. A very special note of gratitude and thanks is due to Dr. Karen Glanz, who almost single-handedly has seen this project to completion, from its humble beginnings as some isolated notes to a full-featured, comprehensive supplement. Few others could have performed this Herculean task with such enthusiasm and commitment. A very proud Journal Editor salutes Dr. Glanz, and exclaims, .'Thanks for a job well done!" Laura S. Sims VOLUME 18 NUMBER 1
SUPPLEMENT 1986