ISHS Acta Horticulturae 790: VIII International People-Plant Symposium on Exploring Therapeutic Powers of Flowers, Greenery and Nature
MONITORING AUTONOMIC NERVOUS ACTIVITY OF WORKERS HARVESTING APPLES, USING A PORTABLE ELECTROCARDIOGRAPH |
| Authors: | S. Furuhashi, M. Hirata, E. Tanaka, T. Suzuki, K. Oosawa |
| Keywords: | harvesting apples, portable electrocardiograph, physiological effect, psychological effect |
| Abstract:
Heartbeat rate, skin temperatures and brain waves have been used as indices to examine the physiological effects of physical conditions in indoor workers (Furuhashi et al., 2003). Conventional monitoring technology restricts subject movements due to the use of wires that connect the body to the immobilized recorder. An attempt was made in this study to determine autonomic nervous activity of outdoor workers with a compact portable electrocardiograph (ActivtracerTM) in association with the harvesting of apples. Activities of both sympathetic and parasympathetic nerve systems were estimated from R-R intervals of heartbeat pulses. Twelve male students (20-25 years old) employed for the determination did both harvesting and walking (control), alternatively. Psychological elements of the subjects were also determined by questionnaires (POMS, MCLS-1 and VAS) before, during, and after the testing period. The activity of the parasympathetic nerve system, an index representing relaxation, decreased to low levels while working, then increased quickly and was sustained for a short period following the work. Thus, it seems possible that both harvesting apples and the walking control had post-work relaxation effects on workers. However, since the degree of fatigue determined by questionnaires just after work was higher in harvesting than in the control, the workers may have had a more comfortable sense of fatigue in the case of harvesting apples. | |
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