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Shift Work Adaptation Among Police Officers: The BCOPS Study
Torrance L Nevels1,2,3, James B Burch1,2, Michael D Wirth1
1Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Arnold School of Public Health, University of South Carolina, Columbia, South Carolina, USA.
Chronobiology International
|March 30, 2021
Summary
Shiftwork maladaptation in police officers is linked to higher levels of stress and certain disease biomarkers. Maladapted night shift officers showed elevated leptin, insulin, IL-6, and TNF-α, suggesting increased chronic disease risk.
Area of Science:
- Occupational Health
- Biomarkers
- Shiftwork Research
Background:
- Shiftwork adaptation is understudied in police officers.
- Differences in disease biomarkers between adapted and maladapted shiftworkers are not well understood.
Purpose of the Study:
- To characterize shiftwork adaptation among police officers.
- To compare disease biomarkers between adapted, maladapted, and day-shift police officers.
Main Methods:
- Latent class analysis identified adapted and maladapted shiftworkers among 430 police officers.
- Biomarkers of inflammation, heart rate variability, and cardiometabolic risk were compared.
- Analyses adjusted for confounding factors.
Main Results:
- Maladapted night shift officers reported more stress, sleep disturbances, fatigue, and less social support.
- Elevated levels of leptin, insulin, interleukin-6 (IL-6), and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) were observed in maladapted officers.
- No significant differences were found for other tested biomarkers.
Conclusions:
- Shiftwork maladaptation in police officers may increase risk for chronic diseases.
- Further prospective studies are needed to establish causality due to the cross-sectional design.
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