


The body will recover easier from the stresses of shiftwork. Engage in regular exercise and a healthy diet to reduce the stress on the body and help increase energy.Avoid heavy foods and alcohol before sleeping.A fifteen-minute nap could increase sleepiness. If napping during a break at work, twenty to thirty minutes should be the minimum. A short afternoon or evening nap can help fight sleepiness during the night.During shiftwork, schedule at least seven hours in bed, even if you don’t sleep the whole time.Keep the schedule regular and predictable.Keep consecutive night shifts to a minimum.Avoid permanent night shifts for workers.Shiftwork can be managed successfully by implementing a strategy and following some best practices: Continuing this doesn’t allow the body to completely adapt to sleep and body rhythms, increasing fatigue. Events and social activities scheduled during the day can lead to shift workers going for longer periods without a normal sleep schedule. If the worker has a family, spending time with them during the day when off work becomes a priority. Many errands and chores can only be done during daylight hours. Looking at the social effects, those working shiftwork may go back to a normal schedule on their days off. If a worker has poor health habits, then the stress of an alternating schedule is harder to fight. In the long run, the stress placed on employees from shiftwork can aggravate current health conditions like heart disease and digestive disorders. The ability to concentrate is reduced, increasing the risk of accidents when performing tasks requiring workers’ undivided attention. Sleep loss over time increases fatigue and affects performance on and off the job. Whatever the industry, shiftwork carries increased risk to the employee.Ĭhanges in sleep occur immediately after starting shiftwork, with night workers usually getting the least amount of sleep. Many chemical production processes are longer than a typical shift, requiring a day shift, evening shift, and overnight shift.The manufacturing industry has production processes that must run 24 hours to operate profitably.Some might work solely overnight, such as grocery stockers or night watchmen.Emergency responders often work this type of schedule. Many involved in shiftwork rotate from a day shift to night shift at different intervals throughout the month.

Typically, shiftwork involves working outside of the normal daylight working hours of 7 a.m. New projects create deadlines that require adding shifts or moving schedules around. Shifts often change based on variables that require longer hours. If you are part of manufacturing, various medical occupations, or emergency response, your work schedule is highly influenced by external factors. Both night work and rotating shift work have negative physical effects along with social stresses. Unfortunately for many workers on rotating shifts, the solution isn’t as simple as switching modes on a phone. In response to this, many phone updates as of late introduced a night mode, where blue light isn’t released. Ever have trouble sleeping after looking at the phone or computer at night? There is evidence that the blue light emanating from these devices can influence the release of hormones responsible for inducing sleep, since blue light from the sun in the morning hours helps us to wake up. Our circadian rhythm is responsible for influencing our sleep-wake cycles, hormone release, and many other body functions. Whether a rotating shift is your current or future situation, being prepared to handle it can increase the likelihood of success.Ĭircadian rhythms are changes in the body that follow a 24-hour cycle, responding to the light and darkness in our environment. However, there are strategies to lessen the impact on worker health. Like many people who work a rotating shift, the choice wasn’t up for discussion, at least not for anyone who wanted to stay employed. Back in 2015, I was working with a shop that decided to implement a rotating shift.
