Shift work can take toll on health

Shift work is a necessary part of business. Health care, resource industries, policing, and other services require a 24-hour schedule.
According to Statistics Canada, in 2005 roughly 28 percent, or 4.1 million of the 14.6 million Canadians employed, worked something other than a typical day shift of 9 a.m.-5 p.m.

But while this shift work is necessary, it also can have a variety of adverse physical and psychological health effects.
“You’re more likely to have car accidents because you can’t concentrate as well,” noted Marlis Bruyere, administrator of the Fort Frances Community Clinic.
The list does not stop there. Physical effects can include upset stomach, high blood pressure, digestion problems, heartburn, chronic fatigue, insomnia, and increased risk of cardiovascular diseases.
And for those who already have existing chronic health problems, such as asthma or heart conditions, shift work has been shown to elevate these issues, Bruyere said.
For instance, changes in “normal” sleep habits and, in turn, natural eating habits, can throw off the cycle of medication, often requiring increased doses in prescription drugs in response.
Asthma is one condition which is always worse at night, noted Bruyere, but most people don’t notice because that is their sleep time. But for a person who must work through the worst time of their asthma, it can take increased medication to control the symptoms.
Bruyere said most people suffering the health consequences of shift work often do not recognize its effects—and don’t realize their medication doses are high because that is the way it’s always been for them.
“They don’t even recognize that it’s more because it’s just what their life is,” she remarked.
Psychologically, shift work is linked to depression, anxiety, and overall increased rates of stress.
Levi Morris works shifts at the mill here and said the effect of shift work all depends on the person. He does not really have a problem working shifts but said some of his older co-workers likely would disagree.
“It totally depends on your perspective,” he remarked.
Calling himself a positive guy, Morris looks for the good in working two days and two nights, then having four-consecutive days off.
At the same time, he admitted he experiences occasional bouts of insomnia, especially when transitioning from days to nights.
Bruyere explained rotational shift work, where the cycle of working days and nights always changes, often is the most difficult because it requires a constant change in the body’s “circadian rhythm.”
The circadian rhythm operates on a 24-hour cycle and functions as the body’s clock. It regulates body functions such as sleeping, waking, digestion, body temperature, blood pressure, and pulse.
Meal times, and light or darkness, cue the rhythm to function normally. Rotational shift work throws off this rhythm and causes negative health effects.
“Interest in the effects of shift work on people has developed because many experts have blamed rotating shifts for the ‘human error’ connected with nuclear power plant incidents, air crashes, and other catastrophic accidents,” the Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety states on its website.
Morris said his body adjusts pretty quickly to the changes in circadian rhythm. “You kind of get used to it,” he reasoned.
In 2005, women accounted for 42 percent of all full-time workers, with 41 percent of those working rotational shifts, StatsCan noted. This could be cause for concern in that there are specific health effects for women working shifts.
Studies have found the risk of breast cancer to be 60 percent higher for women working shifts and other problems, such as irregular menstrual cycles and higher risk of miscarriage, according to an Occupational Health Clinics for Ontario Workers Inc. document entitled “Shift work, health effects and solutions.”
Physically, these effects take a toll on the body. At the same time, missing out on typical everyday activities such as hobbies, time with children/spouses, and other social activities has been linked to depression.
“[Shift work] limits how much time you can spend being social,” agreed Bruyere. “People will get depressed because all they do is sleep and work.”
This is one point Morris relates to. He said it can be difficult when his partner arrives home and he has little time to spend before he leaves for work.
“She’ll get off work and I’ll go to work,” he noted. “And she has to tip-toe in the morning [when he comes off a night shift].”
“It’s the whole scheduling of things,” Morris said, adding it also can be frustrating to miss out on time with friends on weekends.
“That gets annoying.”
However, a 2005 Statistics Canada study, entitled “Work-life balance of shift workers,” found 73 percent of those polled were satisfied with their work-life balance. Though it also found there was a 10 percent higher likelihood for shift workers to be dissatisfied with this balance compared to day workers.
The Occupational Health Clinics for Ontario Workers Inc. document also said shift workers are more likely to divorce because opposite schedules cause marital stress.
Bruyere said it all depends on the family and their ability to cope with different timetables.
“It depends on how adaptable the family is,” she remarked. “It’s difficult to try and maintain a normal life.”
Morris agreed, saying his girlfriend often loses sleep because of his shifts. “She doesn’t get much sleep when I work nights,” he conceded.
Winter is especially tricky, he added, because sharing a vehicle and working around their separate timetables can be a challenge.
At the same time, Bruyere and various studies note there are some pluses to shift work. For instance, it can ease child care needs since one parent is home in the daytime and one in the evening.
And for shifts where someone might work four days on and four days off or something similar, like Morris, the large blocks of time can allow for special trips or personal time.
“It’s all about maximizing what you have, there are pluses to it,” said Bruyere.
Morris takes the same perspective, and does enjoy having four days off in a row because it enables him to go on trips.
Some tips for minimizing the negative effects of working shifts include regular exercise, eating a balanced diet, scheduling at least one daily meal with the family, setting time aside for spouses and children, using a calendar to keep track of events, using ear plugs for a better sleep, drinking lots of water, and making sure family and friends are aware and considerate of the worker’s sleep hours and needs.
Bruyere said shift work comes down to two things: “You work hard when you work,” and make the most of the time off you have.
“Everybody knows what shift work is about,” echoed Morris. “Here’s the pluses, here’s the negatives—you choose.”