Industries have their scheduled timespan for labors that they need to work. Labor’s work according to their shift. Shift work includes both long-term night shifts and work schedules in which employees change or rotate shifts. Although, in medical terms, night shift work is considered as risk factor for health problems. Because it may increase the probability of developing cardiovascular disease, cognitive impairment, diabetes, and obesity, among other conditions. It also increases many sleep disorders like insomnia, excessive sleepiness or both. But the new study suggests- men who work during night shifts has increased the risk of cancer. Their sleep habits according to shift work involve circadian disruption.
Scientists from the University of Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China conducted this study. Scientists actually wanted to discover the independent and combined effects of three sleep habits on cancer incidence. Those three sleep habits are night shift work, daytime napping, and night time sleep. They involved 27,000 volunteers who had worked night shifts for more than 20 years. Via a questionnaire they determine individuals who had a habit of taking daytime naps, and when they usually went to sleep at night and woke up in the morning.
Scientists found that men who had worked night shifts had a 27% increased risk of cancer incidence. Additionally, the men who did not nap during daytime had double risk of cancer. Moreover, the men who slept for more than 10 hours a day had an increased amount of cancer risk. Whereas, such evidence does not found in women.
That means the male participants with at least two of these sleep habits had a 43% increased risk of cancer incidence and a two-fold increase in cancer mortality.
According to scientists, “Their conclusions may be limited by the self-reported lifestyle data, the ageing nature of the cohort and a relatively short-term follow-up period. They recommend that a longer-term study should follow up this initial study to verify their findings.“