Sunday, September 01, 2013

Health Scan: Shift work could be hazardous to women’s health

Health Scan: Shift work could be hazardous to women’s health


Studies find working the night shift raises the risk in women of contracting type-II diabetes, overweight and smoking.

Girl sleeping
Girl sleeping Photo: Wikicommons
Working the night shift raises the risk in women of contracting type-II diabetes as well as overweight and smoking, according to two prospective studies recently published in the Israel Journal of Obstetrics/Gynecology.

The two US studies, conducted over long periods among nurses, were analyzed in the journal by Prof. Ido Sholat of the Technion-Israel Institute of Technology’s Rappaport Medical Faculty and Rambam Medical Center in Haifa.

Women who work for years on the night shift are more likely to be overweight, develop metabolic syndrome and smoke. Previous studies on the subject had been small and conducted on men, mostly in Japan. The journal article concluded that women who work late should be screened for such risks.

To blame is a disruption of the circadian rhythm, a roughly 24-hour cycle in the physiological processes of living beings, the researchers suggest.

Disruptions of the circadian rhythm involve a complex process in the sleep cycle, energy balance, body heat, cell cycles and the production of hormones. All of these also affect lifestyle, which is a major factor in type-II diabetes.
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