| Sugarcane (N=86) | Construction (N=56) | Farming (N=52) | P-value* | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| A. Current occupational heat stress | ||||
| Effective work hours per day (work hours minus breaks), mean±SD | 6.5±1.2† | 8.1±0.7† | 5.3±2.0† | <0.001 |
| Very rapid work pace, % | 74.4† | 53.6 | 40.4 | <0.001 |
| No shade during breaks, % | 20.9‡ | 1.8‡ | 11.5 | 0.004 |
| Lifting weights >50 lbs., % | 18.6† | 66.1 | 65.4 | <0.001 |
| Awkward work postures, % | 58.1 | 76.8 | 69.2 | 0.063 |
| Incentives to cut more cane, % | 82.6 | – | – | – |
| Hours post-burning at field entrance, | ||||
| mean±SD | 11.7±6.2 | – | – | – |
| Self-reported weight loss on the current job (last two months), % | 77.9† | 39.3 | 36.5 | <0.001 |
| Fainted at work, % | 5.8 | 0 | 1.9 | 0.126 |
| Dysuria (‘chistata’), % | 43.0 | 48.2 | 44.2 | 0.827 |
| B. Fluid and fructose intake | ||||
| Fluid intake previous day (workday) | ||||
| Total fluid (L), mean±SD | 6.2±4.1† | 4.4±2.1 | 4.0±2.7 | 0.003 |
| Water | 4.4±3.9† | 2.9±2.1 | 2.8±2.4 | 0.002 |
| Sugary drinks without electrolyte | ||||
| hydration solution | 1.8±1.8 | 1.5±0.9 | 1.2±0.8 | 0.208 |
| Electrolyte solution (N=31) | 1.2±1.1 | – | – | – |
| Lowest quartile total fluid (≤2.5 L), % | 18.6 | 19.6 | 40.4† | 0.009 |
| Highest quartile total fluid (≥7.0 L), % | 40.7† | 8.9 | 13.5 | <0.001 |
| Fluid intake on typical non-work day | ||||
| Total fluid (L), mean±SD | 4.2±2.3 | 3.8±1.7 | 4.1±2.2 | 0.503 |
| Water | 3.0±2.0 | 2.2±1.3 | 2.7±2.0 | 0.053 |
| Sugary drinks | 1.2±1.1 | 1.6±1.1 | 1.4±1.9 | 0.117 |
| Fructose intake previous day (workday) | ||||
| Total fructose intake (g), mean±SD | 103.1±72.1† | 80.1±46.1 | 70.9±36.8 | 0.008 |
| From food sources | 8.4±10.7† | 15.9±16.6 | 17.4±16.7 | <0.001 |
| From added sugar | 94.7±70.5† | 64.2±38.1 | 53.2±30.7 | <0.001 |
| During work hours | 58.6±44.7† | 28.6±21.4 | 26.1±16.5 | <0.001 |
| Sugary drinks (‘frescos’, sodas, coffee) | 22.5±15.7 | 28.6±21.4 | 26.1±16.3 | 0.108 |
| Sugarcane chewing (N=53) | 35.0±18.5 | – | – | – |
| Electrolyte solution (N=31) | 40.3±35.2 | – | – | – |
| Outside (before and after) work hours | 36.1±39.3 | 35.6±31.4 | 27.1±25.9 | 0.350 |
| Highest quartile total fructose intake (>107 g), % | 40.7† | 19.6 | 15.7 | 0.002 |
| C. Work and pesticide use history | ||||
| Cumulative time on current job (months), mean±SD | 77±60 | 68±80 | 116±67† | 0.001 |
| Ever sugarcane work, % | 100.0† | 3.6 | 3.8 | <0.001 |
| Ever plantation (other than sugarcane), % | 24.4 | 5.4† | 21.2 | 0.012 |
| Ever work in small-scale agricultural (%) | 61.6† | 25.0† | 100.0† | <0.001 |
| Ever construction work, % | 5.8 | 100.0† | 11.5 | <0.001 |
| Ever any pesticide use, % | 46.5† | 10.7† | 71.2† | <0.001 |
| Glyphosate, % | 19.8† | 0.0 | 3.8 | <0.001 |
| 2,4-D, % | 23.3† | 0.0† | 9.6† | <0.001 |
| Paraquat, % | 9.3 | 3.6 | 25.0† | 0.002 |
| Chlorpyrifos, % | 0.0 | 0.0 | 23.1† | <0.001 |
| Cypermethrin, % | 18.6† | 3.6† | 42.6† | <0.001 |
Values are mean±SD unless indicated otherwise.
*p Value for differences between groups: ANOVA for normally distributed continuous variables, Kruskal-Wallis for not normally distributed continuous variables, χ2 test for categorical variables.
†Significantly different from the other two categories in post hoc tests.
‡Significant difference only between sugarcane cutters and construction workers.