Why are nurses obese?

gabbygirl78

Sucks that nurses have to work long hours, they should just be able to have a regular schedule like everyone else

That's nice... in theory. Too bad patients need 24 hour care.

Agreed... i am a nurse and i am obese. It is stressful and crazy hours often night shift or swing shifts. You frequently eat on the go or out of vending machines because your just to tired to do it any other way,.... the biggest thing is STRESS... stress can cause you to gain weight and nursing is one of the most stressful jobs there are. Also, as in my case, a lot of nurses gain a lot of weight during nursing school because all you do is eat, study and stress, so it may just be we have not lost that weight yet.... after 5 years lol

rickyd88

I don't see how you can work in the medical field, and be obese/overweight. That has always bugged me. How are you going to tell others they need to eat less junk, when you're eating horrible things yourself? And none of that ''I work long hours'' crap. There's something called calorie control.

I'm a nurse. Not a dietician. I've never once told a patient to lose weight. My job is to love and support people unconditionally in their weakest moments. My job is to save lives whatever condition they're in without prejudice or judgment. Not even considering that I'm a nurse, if I was employing a nurse it would be more important to me that they were ****-hot in knowledge and skills, not that they can bench press 200kgs and had a bmi of 25. I'll tell you something though - I might be overweight but I know a few of my 150lb friends couldn't shift a 500lb patient like I can.

Sedna_51

They work in a high-stress occupation with extended shifts that doesn't generally allow regular intervals for meals? I'm not a nurse, but I worked in clinical research for a few years seeing patients, and the stress and hectic scheduling involved in each day was astounding. On clinic days, we didn't have the space to store meals from home, or the time or space to sit down and eat them. I personally didn't have the energy to spare to focus on weight loss until about six months after I moved to my desk job.

Also: because nurses (and doctors, and everyone in the medical profession for that matter) are human, and are vulnerable to the same stressors and frustrations and tempting baskets of cheese fries that the rest of us are. If anything, it's a good reminder that simply knowing what you have to do to be healthy is not a guarantor of health.

gabbygirl78

I'd like to see half the idiots with horrible comments in here try and do a nurses job.

:drinker: thank you!!! You haven't seen hard work until you have worked as a nurse!!!

Fivepts

I'm a psychiatric social worker, and a lot of my coworkers and other people in my profession tend to be overweight. I feel like it's the same kind of deal - long hours, stressful work full of mental and emotional strain (we just had a guy get recommitted today and that was a rough one) and your breaks are always liable to be interrupted by some crisis or another so you tend to eat grab-and-go meals. You're on your feet all the time, and that makes it hard to want to exercise on top of work. These aren't excuses (that's why I'm on MFP, after all), but they are all contributing factors.

ETA: IMO, it doesn't have anything to do with being knowledgeable about healthy eating and exercise. We work all the time to encourage our clients to be healthier when we ourselves aren't always the healthiest. Having the knowledge doesn't always translate to putting it into practice.

Yep, eating to relieve stress.

gabbygirl78

I don't see how you can work in the medical field, and be obese/overweight. That has always bugged me. How are you going to tell others they need to eat less junk, when you're eating horrible things yourself? And none of that ''I work long hours'' crap. There's something called calorie control.

I'm a nurse. Not a dietician. I've never once told a patient to lose weight. My job is to love and support people unconditionally in their weakest moments. My job is to save lives whatever condition they're in without prejudice or judgment. Not even considering that I'm a nurse, if I was employing a nurse it would be more important to me that they were ****-hot in knowledge and skills, not that they can bench press 200kgs and had a bmi of 25. I'll tell you something though - I might be overweight but I know a few of my 150lb friends couldn't shift a 500lb patient like I can.

Agreeing with this 100 % also... looks like we nurses have to stand together on this thread! If they haven't walked in our shoes they apparently have no clue!

Sedna_51

I don't see how you can work in the medical field, and be obese/overweight. That has always bugged me. How are you going to tell others they need to eat less junk, when you're eating horrible things yourself? And none of that ''I work long hours'' crap. There's something called calorie control.

I'm a nurse. Not a dietician. I've never once told a patient to lose weight. My job is to love and support people unconditionally in their weakest moments. My job is to save lives whatever condition they're in without prejudice or judgment. Not even considering that I'm a nurse, if I was employing a nurse it would be more important to me that they were ****-hot in knowledge and skills, not that they can bench press 200kgs and had a bmi of 25. I'll tell you something though - I might be overweight but I know a few of my 150lb friends couldn't shift a 500lb patient like I can.

yaaaaayyy this /clap clap clap clap clap
I will tell you that when I had my kidney transplant, I didn't give a **** about whether the nurses and doctors who worked on me were fat or thin or whatever, I cared that they knew EXACTLY WHAT THEY WERE DOING and would do their best to keep me in one piece. And they did. Go nurses. Thank you for listening to me ramble in the recovery room and not laughing at me (at least where i could hear).

xmysterix

Maybe 'cause nurses are, like, people? And lots of people are obese? Just a thought.

FWIW, the five nurses I know are all thin. One is a seriously fit mother of 4 and runs daily, two are in their early twenties and have always been thin, another is in her 40s and works out regularly, and the last is in her 50s, does hours of gardening every week, and is average weight for her age.

Jennisin1

http://www.qualityhealth.com/dieting-articles/10-fattest-jobs-americafor-men-women

Why is it considered rude to ask about the reason behind an accurate observation that health care workers have a higher level of obesity than the general population? Its the truth and creates a general curiousity because they are health care worker and surrounded by the results of poor health daily, a lot of which is driven by obesity.

rickyd88

I don't see how you can work in the medical field, and be obese/overweight. That has always bugged me. How are you going to tell others they need to eat less junk, when you're eating horrible things yourself? And none of that ''I work long hours'' crap. There's something called calorie control.

I'm a nurse. Not a dietician. I've never once told a patient to lose weight. My job is to love and support people unconditionally in their weakest moments. My job is to save lives whatever condition they're in without prejudice or judgment. Not even considering that I'm a nurse, if I was employing a nurse it would be more important to me that they were ****-hot in knowledge and skills, not that they can bench press 200kgs and had a bmi of 25. I'll tell you something though - I might be overweight but I know a few of my 150lb friends couldn't shift a 500lb patient like I can.

Agreeing with this 100 % also... looks like we nurses have to stand together on this thread! If they haven't walked in our shoes they apparently have no clue!

Exactly. There's a certain poster in here who 'doesn't want a fat nurse'. That's cool because when he drops on the floor and has a cardiac arrest at the gym I will decide I don't like skinny patients and I will walk away ...

ninerbuff

Because they consume more calories than their bodies need.

This. Like any profession, many don't follow what they do for work. I've seen hair stylists with bad hair, carpenter's with crappy houses, mechanics with crappy running cars, etc.

A.C.E. Certified Personal/Group FitnessTrainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition

Sedna_51

http://www.qualityhealth.com/dieting-articles/10-fattest-jobs-americafor-men-women

Why is it considered rude to ask about the reason behind an accurate observation that health care workers have a higher level of obesity than the general population? Its the truth and creates a general curiousity because they are health care worker and surrounded by the results of poor health daily, a lot of which is driven by obesity.

I don't think asking the question is necessarily rude, but responding to very real issues about stress and timing and shift work with "learn to calorie count! these are just excuses!" is pretty obnoxious. Particularly since I think nurses are frequently an underappreciated and overworked population. It's pretty tough to pull a twelve-hour shift dealing with the worst grossest things people can do (hello, wound care!) and then being told what a lazy shameful fatty you are.

renatewolfe

Long hours, night shifts, stress, lack of time to sit down to eat.

gabbygirl78

I don't see how you can work in the medical field, and be obese/overweight. That has always bugged me. How are you going to tell others they need to eat less junk, when you're eating horrible things yourself? And none of that ''I work long hours'' crap. There's something called calorie control.

I'm a nurse. Not a dietician. I've never once told a patient to lose weight. My job is to love and support people unconditionally in their weakest moments. My job is to save lives whatever condition they're in without prejudice or judgment. Not even considering that I'm a nurse, if I was employing a nurse it would be more important to me that they were ****-hot in knowledge and skills, not that they can bench press 200kgs and had a bmi of 25. I'll tell you something though - I might be overweight but I know a few of my 150lb friends couldn't shift a 500lb patient like I can.

Agreeing with this 100 % also... looks like we nurses have to stand together on this thread! If they haven't walked in our shoes they apparently have no clue!

Exactly. There's a certain poster in here who 'doesn't want a fat nurse'. That's cool because when he drops on the floor and has a cardiac arrest at the gym I will decide I don't like skinny patients and I will walk away ...

:laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :drinker: :drinker: :drinker: :drinker: Here Here!!!! Me too! 'lol!

Mustang_Susie

Why are so many topics on mfp absurdly ignorant?

I've been a nurse for 25+ years.
I am 5'8" and 118#.

born2drum

Good to know I am obese.

Why are doctors? Or mailmen? Or attorneys? :huh:

MOst attorneys are fat and overweight. I know, I work around them and with them all day everyday. About 65% of them are out-of-shape NFL pros. It's so hilarious how much these guys know about sports.

Docmahi

tough hours - lots of stress and hospitals typically dont have cheap healthy meals available in the cafeteria. Especially if you are working night shift you will get suckered into the pizza at 3am or wings or whatever - nature of the beast

lots of overweight doctors too

born2drum

Sucks that nurses have to work long hours, they should just be able to have a regular schedule like everyone else

Most nurses only work 3-4 days a week on 12-hour rounds so to be quite honest long hour shifts mean nothing.

Not to mention no one on MFP cuts anyone else any slack when they offer any other excuses. Why should this be any different? Many people have hectic lives and busy schedules. If being fit is important, you make it a priority, right?

I work 9 hour days, commute 2 hours per day (11 hours so far) I have class 3 nights out of the week, I'm in a band and I also work out. So, that means if we want to talk about how much work, on avg. I work 15 hr shifts mon-friday. So, long hours are nothing but an excuse. Everyone, including mothers, have hectic schedules and should not blame their schedules or use them as a reason of why they got so fat. Mayocean said it best "their fat because they ate more food than their bodies needed." This is why we are all on MFP. Acknowledge that we gained the weight, and make a lifestyle change. Most nurses sit on their *kitten* most of the day anyways. UCLA medical group where I get my yearlies done I would say 80% of the nurses are overweight/obese. Anyways, I'm no expert on this topic. I GOT FAT BECAUSE I ATE TOO MUCH AND LOVE FOOD TOO MUCH LOL

Timshel_

Why do mechanics drive crappy cars?
Why does anyone drink alcohol, smoke, do drugs, not eat paleo and exercise all the time?
Why doesn't everyone continue their education to improve their knowledge?
Why sky dive?
Why do any action sport that endangers a person?
Why not live within your income and have no debt?


Yeah...

rickyd88

Sucks that nurses have to work long hours, they should just be able to have a regular schedule like everyone else

Most nurses only work 3-4 days a week on 12-hour rounds so to be quite honest long hour shifts mean nothing.

Not to mention no one on MFP cuts anyone else any slack when they offer any other excuses. Why should this be any different? Many people have hectic lives and busy schedules. If being fit is important, you make it a priority, right?

Most nurses sit on their *kitten* most of the day anyways.

How would you know that? I don't know a single nurse who spends their day sitting down. Unless you mean the 5 minutes I spend in the bathroom just getting my head straight after saving a life or doing 56 nasogastric tube feeds on babies in a 13 hour shift.