A disruptive lifestyle can often lead shift workers on a constant cycle of eating all of the wrong foods at all of the wrong times of the day.

But if you can’t change the hours that you work – what sort of foods are really healthy for shift workers to eat?

Would you believe food that contains few ingredients?

Confused? Well let me explain.

Thanks to the Weight Loss Industry we’ve become so obsessed about reading the Nutritional Facts on food labels that we’ve forgotten to look closer at the other part of the label – the list of ingredients.

Let’s take a look at the example above.

This label breaks down how much fat, cholesterol, sodium (salt), carbohydrate and sugar is inside the product which is great – but do you recognise any of the ingredients?!

Not really familiar are they.

The sad thing is that we’re so engrossed in reading the nutrition labels on food today; we don’t really look at the actual food content.

In fact so many people will even select their food off a supermarket shelf based on the vitamin and mineral content even if the food does not resemble real food. Protein bars, breakfast cereals, margarine and diet foods are a prime example. These foods may look good in the nutrient content, but when you look at the actual ingredients, you find that there are a bunch of numbers, hydrogenated vegetables oils and a lot of other non-real food items.

So if you’re searching for the healthiest food for shift workers then just keep things simple. Choose food that is as close to how Mother Nature designed it.

I very rarely check the ingredients on food that I buy because I hardly ever eat food that has an ingredient list on it! For example, a piece of fruit doesn’t come with a food label. What you see is what you get – there are no hidden ingredients.

So stop worrying about how many grams of this and that is contained in something – spend more time focussing on what it actually is that you’re eating.

For shift workers who rely heavily on packaged and processed food for “sustenance” – eating this type of food on a long-term basis is certainly not good for your health.

So the next time you head off to the supermarket to do your grocery shopping – spend more time in the fruit and vegetable aisle as opposed to those which contain lots of boxes, jars and packets of food.

At the end of the day nothing can replace a real piece of fruit or vegetable – anything else is a cheap imitation and always will be!

Working shift work is hard – no question. But if you’re working shift work and trying to lose weight, then it can be even harder.

Because not only do shift workers have to work crazy hours, they also have to eat at irregular times as well.

And considering our digestive systems slow right down during the night when we should be sleeping - weight gain amongst shift workers is certainly a common place.

You’re also more likely to eat high processed, sugary foods, along with a vast array of high-caffeinated energy drinks to help keep you awake.

So how can you break away from this bad eating cycle?

Well it’s about taking responsibility for your health and being aware of the toxic food that you are putting into your mouth every single day.

You cannot expect to feel vibrant and healthy if you’re continually feeding your body processed foods . They cause havoc on your digestive system not only causing you to gain weight, but they also make you feel even more tired and lethargic than you already are.

But if your diet consists of whole foods – that is, foods that have undergone little on no processing, then your body will eventually discard the excess weight. You see weight loss is actually quite easy – if you stop eating junk.

It really is that simple.

So you may not have complete control over when you eat, but you certainly have complete control over what you eat.

It’s time to give up the soft drinks, crisps, lollies and fries. It’s not about depriving yourself of these foods – it’s about replacing them with good healthy food that will not only energize you – but keep the scales under control as well.