Contributed by Nicholas E. Blonien, D.O.

As tactical athletes, firefighters require premium fuel for optimal performance. Their shifts bring a range of physiological stressors, from sleep disruption and intense bursts of physical activity to prolonged time on scene in full turnout gear, temperature extremes, and even periods of downtime. This variability makes proper nutrition challenging, and inconsistent health information adds to the difficulties. While it’s easy to get lost in the details, fueling right shouldn’t be complicated. Below are evidence-based principles of tactical athlete nutrition to help design a personalized, high-performance meal plan for firefighters.

1. Athletes need carbohydrates, but timing matters

Carbohydrates are the best fuel for moderate and high intensity physical activity and can be divided into two categories – simple and complex:

• Simple carbs provide quick energy as they are rapidly metabolized to glucose, causing a blood sugar “spike.”
• Complex carbs deliver more sustained energy due to their slow digestion, causing a “slow burn” elevation in blood sugar.

Muscles use glucose for energy, storing it as glycogen to support ongoing exercise. However, eating simple carbs or a large amount of complex carbs at the wrong time can negatively impact health. If you eat more carbs than your body needs for your activity level, the extra get stored as fat and your body may struggle to control blood sugar, increasing the risk of diabetes.

Tips for fueling:

• Simple carbs should be consumed before physical activity to provide immediate energy.
• Complex carbs can be eaten throughout the day but should be moderated, especially during periods of low activity.

2. Eat between 100-200 grams of protein per day for muscle support

Building a strong physique requires plenty of protein, which is the body’s nutritional building blocks. The FDA’s Recommended Daily Allowance (RDA) for protein is 0.36 grams per pound of body weight, which is the minimum to prevent malnutrition. However, as a tactical athlete, the goal is to thrive, not merely survive, requiring significantly more support for the body in this physically demanding profession.

Tips for fueling:

• Space out your protein intake throughout the day to keep your body in build-and-repair mode, aiming for at least 30 grams each meal.
• Each protein-rich meal should include 3 grams of leucine, a key amino acid for muscle building and repair. It can be found in meat, dairy and legumes.

3. Saturated fat intake and cardiovascular disease

Saturated fat is a primary contributor to increased levels of “bad cholesterol” (LDL) in the blood, which significantly increases the risk of cardiovascular disease – a leading cause of death among firefighters. Saturated fat is commonly found in fatty animal-derived foods, which also offer protein and other nutrients, meaning it’s not necessary to eliminate these foods entirely.

Tips for fueling:

• Select low-fat and minimally processed animal-derived foods when consuming them.
• Incorporate plant-based foods that can provide respectable amounts of protein.
• To highlight the importance of limiting saturated fat, a low-fat, plant-based diet is the only nutrition plan shown to facilitate the reversal of coronary artery disease.

4. Sufficient dietary fiber: a critical component of a healthy nutrition plan

Dietary fiber is non-digestible plant material that plays an essential role in maintaining health. While it may seem insignificant, sufficient fiber intake offers numerous benefits, including improved glucose regulation, better cholesterol levels, a healthy gut microbiome, and regular bowel movements. Strong evidence links fiber intake to chronic disease prevention. Good sources of fiber include fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, legumes and complex carbohydrates.

Tips for fueling:

• Adults should aim for a minimum of 30 grams of fiber daily, or about 14 grams per 1,000 calories consumed.
• While there isn’t a defined upper limit for fiber intake, consuming more than 50 grams per day may result in gut discomfort and could possibly impair nutrient absorption.

5. Avoid fad diets like the carnivore and ketogenic diets

While restrictive diets can offer short-term weight loss, as they limit intake of major food groups they are likely to result in nutrient deficiencies in the long run unless you rely heavily on supplements, which may not be the healthiest or cheapest choice.

Examples of diets:

• The Carnivore Diet consists solely of eating animal-derived foods, resulting in low fiber intake and high saturated fat consumption – both clear contributors to chronic disease.
• The Ketogenic Diet minimizes carbohydrate intake, leading to low fiber consumption and increased reliance on animal-derived foods. This diet may also hinder muscle glycogen replenishment, negatively impacting physical performance.
• A vegan or vegetarian diet can make it difficult to get enough protein due to the absence of meat and dairy. Careful planning and taking plant-based protein supplements can help meet protein needs.

6. Create your ideal daily diet

A diet primarily composed of plants, along with controlled amounts of animal-derived foods, is the key for health and sustainability. Consider the Mediterranean Diet, which has demonstrated health benefits for firefighters. Achieving proper nutrition requires an understanding of your daily intake for both macronutrients (carbs, protein, fats) and micronutrients (vitamins, minerals). However, scrutinizing every food label and tallying numbers throughout the day can be disruptive, potentially leading to obsession and anxiety.

Instead, spend some time designing your “ideal daily diet,” incorporating a variety of healthy foods you enjoy. Use a food tracking app or website to assess the nutritional value of your meals and adjust as needed to meet recommended guidelines. Aim to stick to this diet most days of the week, and rest easy that occasional deviations are beneficial for variety and less harmful to your health when a solid foundation is in place.

Firefighters can also learn more about nutrition and how it can help them perform more safely and efficiently while on duty, as well as at home, by scheduling a MnFIRE training on Fitness & Nutrition for your department. Learn more here.

Contributed by Nicholas E. Blonien, D.O.

Cancer remains a leading cause of firefighter mortality. Despite marvelous advances in diagnostic technologies and therapeutics, healthy lifestyle choices are still a powerful prevention strategy, especially for those in the higher-risk firefighting field.

Earlier in 2023, leaders in firefighter research published a review of current evidence supporting the effectiveness of lifestyle interventions in preventing cancer in the fire service. Here are the main lifestyle interventions they recommend:

1. Target obesity

Obesity increases risk of many cancers by as much as 30-80%, including some that already impact the fire service disproportionately. By decreasing body fat percentage, we can decrease risk of cancer. This starts with nutrition and exercise.

2. Get moving

With increasing rank within the fire department comes increased risk of sedentary behavior, especially when the job calls for more time at a desk behind a computer. By intentionally replacing inactivity with movement, such as “exercise snacks,” cancer risk can go down.

3. Prioritize sleep

Getting a good night’s sleep during a busy shift is impossible, but the negative health effects of this can be limited by optimizing sleep when it’s available, both at the fire station and at home. Establishing a bedtime routine, eating during times when your body is prepared for it, limiting nightly snacking and managing stress will make a huge difference.

4. Minimize alcohol

While there continues to be debate about the harmful effects of alcohol on the cardiovascular system, evidence for alcohol consumption as a risk factor for cancer development is much clearer. And rates of alcohol consumption and binge drinking are high among firefighters. Less is better, none is ideal.

5. Dial in the diet

Firefighters tend to follow a standard Western diet, consisting of processed foods and comfort food snacking. This type of eating has been clearly associated with increased cancer risk. Alternatively, a nutrition plan resembling the Mediterranean diet has been associated with decreased cancer risk. Sticking to mostly plants, healthy oils, nuts/seeds, fish and minimal meat/dairy is the best fuel plan for tactical athletes like firefighters.

A cultural shift is needed to tackle these issues, and a unified firehouse can be powerful. Talk with family and friends, engage leadership, partner with colleagues and ask healthcare providers questions. Little improvements can make a difference and add up to bigger change.

Protect your department from cancer

Learn more about shifting the culture in MnFIRE’s cancer deep-dive training. In this class, firefighters learn the activities that put them at higher risk for developing cancer, proper PPE strategies for mitigating cancer risks and what types of screenings can be done to catch cancer early. Sign up your department for a FREE training here.

While nutrition alone can’t solve the complexities of a mental health condition, a growing body of research is showing how diets that support brain health can benefit mental health and well-being, and also help reduce stress and improve focus.

How nutrients support you

Your brain and body need a variety of nutrients to support your health. It’s important to note – despite the claims of ads, trends and friends – no one food or drink (or supplement for that matter) can uplift a down mood or cure a mental health condition. Generally speaking, your brain and body regularly need a balance of proteins, fibers, carbohydrates, vitamins, minerals, (unsaturated) fats and water to fuel them properly. Each one plays a role. For example:

• Protein helps your brain produce the chemicals it uses to regulate your thoughts and emotions.
• The healthy omega fats found in salmon, avocados, nuts and seeds, among other sources, support your brain function.
• Your body turns carbohydrates into glucose (a kind of sugar) that travels through your blood to feed your brain. Complex carbs found in whole grains, for example, produce slow and steady sugars to keep your brain fueled. Without them, you may experience low blood sugar, which can make you feel tired, irritable and depressed.
• The foods you eat also help promote a healthy gut – stomach, intestines and colon – with the right amount and kinds of bacteria to process and break down your food. Fiber aids in the digestion process, and so do foods with probiotics, like yogurt, sauerkraut, tempeh and kimchi.
• If you don’t drink enough water, you can become dehydrated. Dehydration makes it harder to focus and think clearly. It also can depress your mood and energy level.

On the other hand, foods low on nutrients can make you feel mentally worse. For example:

• The trans fats often found in highly processed and packaged foods have been linked to bad moods.
• Similarly, highly processed, sugary and fried foods have been linked to hyperactivity, aggression, poor concentration, depression and anxiety in children and adolescents.
• And the caffeine so many people rely on for a boost of energy can actually overstimulate you, causing feelings of irritability, anxiousness and depression. It also can keep you from sleeping soundly.
• Diets low in nutrients also affect gut health. As noted above, this system helps you digest your food properly and eliminate waste. If it’s off, so is your body’s ability to absorb nutrients and feed your brain.

Risks of poor nutrition

Interestingly, much of this brain-nutrient-mental health support system can work both ways. If you’re already feeling stressed, anxious or sad, you may find it difficult to eat, much less prepare, healthful food. The lack of rich nutrients makes it harder for your brain to function properly, which in turn aggravates your already struggling mental health, and can even worsen how you already feel.

When you’re not feeling well or eating well, it can also affect your gut. You may feel stopped up, stirred up, bloated or gassy, all of which throws off your digestive system. If your digestive system is malfunctioning, your brain isn’t getting the fuel it needs, and, hungry, struggles to function properly.

Help yourself eat nutrient-rich foods

Follow these three general guidelines to choose more nutritious options:

1. Eat more:
   • Vegetables
   • Fruits
   • Whole grains (bread, brown rice, quinoa)
   • Legumes (lentils, chickpeas, soybeans, and kidney, black or pinto beans)
   • Fish and seafood
   • Unsaturated fats like those found in oily fish (salmon, mackerel, sardines), avocados, seeds, nuts and olive oil
2. Eat in moderation:
   • Red meat (beef, pork lamb, goat and venison)
3. Eat less:
   • Refined sugars (from cane, beets, coconut, palm and corn)
   • Processed foods, especially those high in saturated fat, salt and sugar (such as pre-packaged instant and canned soups, deli meats, sausages, snacks and breakfast cereals)

Fresh foods may be more expensive or harder to access in some areas. So, frozen, canned and dried options are a great choice, too. Look for ones that are minimally processed and have limited additives or preservatives.

Also, consider these ways to help yourself steer toward nutrient-rich foods daily:

• Prepare and store healthy meals and snacks in advance.
• Make one-pot meals – stews, soups and casseroles – to save yourself time and hassle.
• Make plans to cook in rather than eating out with family and friends.
• Have food delivered if getting to the store is too time-consuming or difficult.

A nutrition guide designed specifically for firefighters

Even small changes can make a difference over time. If you need recipe ideas, consider looking online for dietitian-approved options or asking your health care provider for help.

Firefighters can also learn more about nutrition and how it can help them perform more safely and efficiently while on duty, as well as at home, by scheduling a MnFIRE training on Fitness & Nutrition for your department. Learn more here.

Repurposed from MnFIRE Assistance Program partner, Optum.

 

Sources

BetterHealth Channel. Food and your mood. betterhealth.vic.gov.au/health/healthyliving/food-and-your-mood</span. Accessed October 16, 2023.

American Society for Nutrition. How to boost mental health through better nutrition. nutrition.org/how-to-boost-mental-health-through-better-nutrition/. Accessed October 16, 2023.

BetterHealth. Gut health. betterhealth.vic.gov.au/health/healthyliving/gut-health. Accessed October 16, 2023.

Dietitians Australia. Diet and nutrition health advice: Mental health including anxiety and depression. dietitiansaustralia.org.au/health-advice/mental-health-including-anxiety-and-depression. Accessed October 16, 2023.

Harvard Health. Nutritional psychiatry: Your brain on food. health.harvard.edu/blog/nutritional-psychiatry-your-brain-on-food-201511168626. Accessed October 16, 2023.

Mental Health Foundation. Diet and mental health. mentalhealth.org.uk/explore-mental-health/a-z-topics/diet-and-mental-health. Accessed October 16, 2023.

Mind. Food and mental health. mind.org.uk/information-support/tips-for-everyday-living/food-and-mental-health/. Accessed October 16, 2023.

World Health Organization. Mental disorders. who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/mental-disorders/?gclid=CjwKCAjwvrOpBhBdEiwAR58-3F0CEF39A_G2i0LFhhAHl2NLCvU1axJCRNFiPv62ZGJDoo92coQw7BoCbtAQAvD_BwE. Accessed October 16, 2023.

Contributed by Paul J. Anderson, M.D.

As a firefighter, food may be one of the last things on your mind. You may work one or two other jobs while trying to hold down a busy family life, and you’re committed to showing up for a fire call, ready to get to work. With this number of responsibilities, you eat when you can. But putting food last on your list will eventually leave you unprepared for an emergency because you are too tired or too unhealthy to rise to the challenge. While being unprepared could cause you injury, it could also keep you, your fellow firefighters, your family or the public from getting help when they need it.

We get it. On top of juggling all of those things, nutritional advice is overwhelming and confusing for most of us. So, here is a great saying from Michael Pollan to get you started: “Eat real food, not too much, mostly plants.”

Eat real food

Eating real food means eating items that naturally occur in the world as things you can eat. Think about an apple, a carrot, black beans, nuts or fish. Processed foods, on the other hand, are edible substances that come out of machines or go through heavy processing like puffed snacks, soft drinks, protein drinks or candy bars. Real food is better fuel because it has more nutrients and fewer calories. Plus, it contains the full variety of nutrients our bodies need to do work and stay healthy.

Not too much

Eating too much of anything provides excess energy (calories) which the body stores as fat. Only about 10 to 20% of your weight should come from fat. The rest (80 to 90%) should be muscle, bone, blood, organs and water. But what is too much?

The average person needs somewhere around 2,000 calories per day just to support basic body functions like thinking, moving around, digestion and breathing. Divide this by three meals per day and you are talking about 675 calories per meal (less if you snack), which is not a lot of food. So, besides learning to eat more real food and less processed foods, the next action you can take is to pay attention to how many calories you eat in a day. There are a number of apps you can use for free (such as myfitnesspal.com) that help you easily track your food intake if you want to learn how many calories you eat.

Mostly plants

No, you don’t have to be a vegetarian or a vegan. But you do need to understand that meat is best kept as a “once in a while” part of your diet, instead of a daily dietary staple. All types of meat contain everything an animal ate and was exposed to during its lifetime, not all of which is good.  In addition, certain components of meat, especially red meat, can create inflammation in your body and that can speed up the development of disease in your blood vessels and heart.

Lifestyle changes such as regular exercise and quality nutrition can improve job performance and help your body reach its full potential. Nutrition is a key pillar of a healthy lifestyle that will improve your ability to be present for your colleagues, your family and yourself. You can read more about other healthy lifestyle pillars, such as physical fitness, on the MnFIRE blog.

Learn how to create and maintain good physical fitness and healthy eating habits to support your firefighter training, work demands and long-term health by signing your department up for the new Firefighter Fitness & Nutrition training from MnFIRE. These trainings are available whenever it’s convenient for your crew, and it’s completely free for all fire departments in Minnesota. Sign up today!

Contributed by Paul J. Anderson, M.D.

As firefighters, we’re no strangers to hard physical work. Wearing turnout gear and equipment in extreme heat while dealing with an emergency can push you to your physical limits. In fact, heart attacks are the number one cause of death on the job for firefighters year after year.

Other physical tasks like moving medical patients, some quite large, out of homes or down stairways can tax you physically, or even leave you with an injury. Increasingly, modern fire departments understand that firefighters need to be strong and fit to do the work of firefighting in a way that avoids injury and promotes safety for everyone.

Maybe your department is starting to promote strength and fitness, or maybe you believe that more strength and physical fitness could help you individually as a firefighter. Here are a few ideas to move you forward.

All firefighters need to have a fitness routine running in the background to support their time on duty. Doing nothing and getting out of shape is not a safe option for firefighters, especially as they age.

If you don’t currently have a routine, you’re not alone. According to the CDC, more than 60% of U.S. adults do not engage in the recommended amount of physical activity.

An easy way to kick-start your routine is walking 30 minutes a day for four to five days per week. Find a loop, pick a time, grab a partner and get started.

The bodyweight strength exercises you learned in high school gym class (free squats, sit-ups, crunches, push-ups, pull-ups, etc.) are productive exercises you can also do anywhere. Start easy and work your way up by increasing a few repetitions per week. There are hundreds of 10-minute strength routines on YouTube that you can check out. Here are some more ideas about what you can do to get started.

Interval training is very important for firefighters to train for the intense exertion of a fire evolution. Intervals have you working near your maximum heart rate (Max HR = 220-your age) for two to five minutes followed by an equal period of easy activity that allows you to recover. Then, you work hard again and recover again. In general, an interval workout should contain four to six repeats like this, and can be done on a bike, spin bike, treadmill or stair climber, or you can find a natural environment (a hill, ski trail or stairs) to use for repeat efforts.

Powerlifting is also very important for firefighters, especially multi-joint movements like squats, deadlifts, bench presses and military presses. You want to make sure you learn good technique for these exercises and work with weights that produce stimulus for your muscles and avoid injury. Again, the web is full of programs to help you refine your approach. For technique, take a spin through Juggernaut Training Systems, and for a great power program look up Jim Wendler’s 5-3-1 program.

Interested in diving deeper into the importance of firefighter fitness and nutrition? Check out MnFIRE’s newest training topics and register your department for a free class here.