Night Work Raises All-Cause Mortality in Women by 11%

Women who work rotating night shifts for ≥5 years report modest increases in all-cause and cardiovascular mortality. Furthermore, ≥15 years of night shift work was also tied to an increase in lung cancer mortality.

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According to researchers, sleep and the circadian system play an important role in cardiovascular health and antitumor activity. Night shift work disrupts this much-needed sleep, which in turn translates to increased rates of cancer and cardiovascular disease, as well as higher mortality.

For the study, researchers looked at 22 years of data from 74,862 registered US nurses (aged 30-55 years) as part of the Nurses’ Health Study.

The data found:

  • All-cause mortality was 11% higher in women who worked rotating night shift for 6-14 and ≥15 years
  • Cardiovascular mortality was 19% higher in women who worked the rotating night shift for 6-14 years and 23% higher for those working ≥15 years
  • Lung cancer mortality was 25% higher in women who worked these shifts for ≥15 years

“These results add to prior evidence of a potentially detrimental relation of rotating night shift work and health and longevity,” said Eva S. Schernhammer, MD, DrPH, associate professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School, and associate epidemiologist, in the department of medicine aty Brigham and Women’s Hospital, both in Boston, MA. 

—Jordyn Greenblatt

References:

  1. Elsevier. Rotating night shift work can be hazardous to your health [press release]. January 5, 2015. www.elsevier.com/about/press-releases/research-and-journals/rotating-night-shift-work-can-be-hazardous-to-your-health. Accessed January 7, 2015.
  2. Gu F, Han J, Laden F, et al. Total and cause-specific mortality of US nurses working rotating night shifts. J Preventive Med. 2014 Jan [epub ahead of print]. doi: dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.amepre.2014.10.018.