Key takeaways:
- Truck drivers are more likely to be obese, which can lead to life-threatening illnesses, such as diabetes and heart disease.
- A physical therapist developed a platform specifically designed for drivers that helps guide and encourage them to make healthier decisions concerning diet and physical activity.
- Recently acquired by Project 61, the app is free for drivers to download.
Diet and exercise. Those two aspects are related to some of the top health concerns that lead to death, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Yet for most of us, taking control of our diet and incorporating more exercise into our lifestyles is easier said than done. Altering diet and exercise habits is even more difficult for truck drivers with demanding schedules and limited resources while on the road.
“Truck drivers ... have two times higher rates of heart disease compared to the average U.S. worker,” Dr. Mark Manera, founder of Offshift, told FleetOwner. “Then, the lifestyle that they live and the environment that's around them sets it up to be really challenging for them.”
Manera began his career as a physical therapist. He saw the contrasts between the health and well-being of his patients who were truck drivers compared to those who were not. As the founder of Offshift, he’s sounding the alarm.
Offshift is a digital platform designed to help truck drivers gradually improve their health. With the acquisition of Project 61, a nonprofit organization dedicated to improving the health of drivers, the two companies are collaborating to make driver-focused health resources readily accessible to drivers.
An overview of truck driver health
Americans aren’t known for their slim figures. More than 40% of the American population is obese, according to the CDC, and this can lead to a multitude of health problems and even death. In fact, adults with obesity also suffer from other chronic diseases, such as diabetes and heart disease.
Unfortunately, obesity among truck drivers is even worse. About 70% of truck drivers are obese, according to the most recent data from the CDC.
“When you have someone who has 150 pounds of extra weight on their body [and] they're jumping up and down the truck they're living their whole life in, the trickle down of that is knee pain—it is joint issues,” Manera said. “And they end up in the physical therapy clinic.”
But joint pain isn’t the worst of Manera’s concerns with driver health: “It also is diabetes, it’s heart disease, it’s life expectancy.” Taking fewer rotations around the sun is another concern. The average life expectancy of a trucker is only 61 years, according to Project 61. (The life expectancy for the average American is 78 years.)
See also: Prioritize driver health and safety
How Offshift and Project 61 can help
The solution goes back to diet and exercise, or, more specifically, developing healthy habits and breaking unhealthy ones. Yet, truckers’ sedentary lifestyles, long hours on the road, and food options that are relegated to burgers and fries aren’t conducive to developing these healthy habits.
“Everyone knows a healthier driver is a safer driver,” Manera said. “But I think fleet owners and executives have struggled as to what solutions are out there, or ‘How do I actually help drivers be healthier?’”
With the Project 61 and Offshift platform, drivers are given tips and guidance on how to be physically active and how to choose healthier meals in a way that is tailored specifically to them.
If a truckstop with a McDonald’s attached is the driver’s only option for a meal, then the app can help them decide which food option is better for their goals. If the driver can only spare 5, 10, or 15 minutes to get their blood flowing, then the app can suggest short activities that a driver can do in their cab to help offset those long hours behind the wheel.
Project 61 and Offshift’s goal is to eventually build a truck driver culture that is healthier for everyone involved. “We want to put the ‘health’ back in ‘health and safety’ because a lot of times it's just focused on the safety piece of it,” Manera explained.
Worth noting, the app is completely free.
“It's a free program that is going toward a bigger mission of just trying to give drivers back some of those years of their life that right now, statistically, they're getting taken off of,” Manera said.
In his new role after the acquisition, Manera will serve as president and chief health officer of Project 61, working alongside Project 61 founder and CEO Jeremy Reymer. The combined companies will kick off an industry-wide health challenge on October 1. Truck drivers and other members of the trucking industry are welcome to participate.
About the Author
Jade Brasher
Senior Editor Jade Brasher has covered vocational trucking and fleets since 2018. A graduate of The University of Alabama with a degree in journalism, Jade enjoys telling stories about the people behind the wheel and the intricate processes of the ever-evolving trucking industry.