Shift work has long been associated with a wide variety of health complaints, some of which are more measurable than others. However, it’s now being suggested for the first time that to work in a shift rotation is to actually increase your chances of developing type 2 diabetes.
And it’s far from a wild theory cooked up on the back of nothing – a new study has drawn direct links between shift work and an elevated chance of developing the condition.
Published in Occupational & Environmental Medicine this week, the study suggests that to work long-term in a shift-based job is to face a 9% higher risk of developing type 2 diabetes than those working non-shift rotations. More worryingly still, the same study also suggested that male shift workers are considerably more likely to develop the condition than females – men working shifts face a 37% elevated diabetes risk.
The data was produced on the back of a dozen studies, which incorporated over 225,000 participants and almost 15,000 diabetes patients. The biggest danger of all was found to be working rotating shift pattern, which showed a spike in diabetes probability of 42%.
As for the cause, the experts responsible for the study suggest that the way in which shift work leaves little room for consistent sleep patterns could be to blame. In addition, shift workers are also more likely to eat an unbalanced diet and exercise less regularly than standard workers, again attributed to the nature of their shift patterns.
“In most cases, the human body was exposed to continuous stress from attempts to adjust as quickly as possible to the varying working hours, but at the same time was frustrated by the continuous shift rotation,” reported the team behind the study.
“Consequently, the health effect on the rotating shift groups may be more profound and pronounced than for other shift groups.”
The resulting report highlighted the importance for male shift workers in particular to exercise more proactivity when working in order to carefully monitor their habits and behaviors for the sake of their health.
“Daytime levels of the male hormone testosterone are controlled by the internal body clock, so it’s possible that repeated disruption may affect this,” the report explained.
The study was carried out at China’s Huazhong University of Science and Technology in Hubei and was led by Dr. Yong Gan.
“Daytime levels of the male hormone testosterone are controlled by the internal body clock, so it’s possible that repeated disruption may affect this,” the team reported.
“Most shift patterns, except mixed and evening shifts, were associated with a heightened risk of the disease compared with those working normal office hours.”
Type 2 diabetes remains one of the most heavily-researched and investigated conditions in the US, affecting millions of lives and amounting an annual health care bill of billions. Thousands of new cases are being diagnosed every month, though researchers remain adamant that perfect the biggest and most influential triggers and catalysts of all are simple lifestyle choices – some of which are more easily controllable than others.