Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 21, 2025
08:36
Collecting Sleep, Circadian, Fatigue, and Performance Data in Complex Operational Environments
Published on: August 8, 2019
12.0K
Shift work effects on incident neuropsychiatric disorders and shift work tolerance
Liu Yang1, Yi-Han Gan1, Xiao-Yu He1
1Department of Neurology and National Center for Neurological Disorders, Huashan Hospital, State Key Laboratory of Medical Neurobiology and MOE Frontiers Center for Brain Science, Shanghai Medical College, Fudan University, Shanghai, China.
Journal of Affective Disorders
|July 6, 2024
Summary
Shift work increases the risk of dementia, anxiety, depression, and sleep disorders by affecting brain structure and increasing immune and glucose levels. Individual factors like socioeconomic status influence tolerance to shift work.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Public Health
- Occupational Health
Background:
- Shift work is a known risk factor for neuropsychiatric disorders.
- Individual variability can influence the impact of shift work on mental health.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the association between shift work and the incidence of neuropsychiatric disorders.
- To explore how individual characteristics affect shift work tolerance.
Main Methods:
- Utilized UK Biobank data from 254,646 participants.
- Employed Cox survival and correlation analyses to assess risks and brain structure impacts.
- Conducted mediation analyses to identify underlying mechanisms and evaluated shift work tolerance across strata.
Main Results:
- Shift work correlated with increased risk of dementia, anxiety, depression, and sleep disorders, but not stroke.
- Observed reductions in brain volumes (thalamus, orbitofrontal, middle temporal) linked to shift work.
- Identified increased immune response and glucose levels as mediating pathways; socioeconomic status and working hours significantly impacted tolerance.
Conclusions:
- Shift work poses significant risks for several neuropsychiatric conditions.
- Personalized health monitoring and management strategies are crucial for shift workers.
- Limitations include potential self-reporting bias and focus on a middle-aged population.
Related Concept Videos
01:13Insufficient Sleep and Sleep Deprivation
138
Insufficient sleep refers to not getting the recommended amount of sleep for optimal functioning, even if it's just slightly less than needed. Sleep insufficiency may occur due to lifestyle choices, such as staying up late for social events or work, resulting in routinely getting less sleep than required. For example, consistently sleeping 6 hours when the body needs 7-9 hours can lead to cumulative effects on health and well-being.
Sleep deprivation is a more severe form of sleep loss...
Sleep deprivation is a more severe form of sleep loss...
138
01:24Substance Use Disorders Affecting Sleep
164
Substance use disorders involve a pattern of using drugs more extensively than intended and continuing use despite harmful consequences. This includes legal substances like alcohol and nicotine, as well as illegal drugs. These disorders often involve both physical and psychological dependence, reflecting compulsive use of substances that significantly alter thoughts, feelings, and behaviors, contributing to a major public health issue.
Understanding the concepts of physical dependence,...
Understanding the concepts of physical dependence,...
164
01:07Narcolepsy
101
Narcolepsy is a chronic sleep disorder characterized by pervasive, uncontrolled sleepiness and other sleep disturbances. One of its hallmark symptoms is an abrupt transition to REM sleep upon falling asleep, which causes symptoms typically associated with this phase to occur unexpectedly during wakefulness. These include the following symptoms, which typically last from a minute or two to half an hour.
101
01:30Stress and Mental Health
96
Chronic stress profoundly affects mental health, significantly influencing mood, behavior, and overall quality of life. Research closely links chronic stress with mental health conditions such as depression, anxiety, and substance use disorders. Ongoing exposure to stress can lead to physiological and psychological changes, initiating a cycle of emotional distress and maladaptive coping mechanisms.
Individuals with depression often experience challenges in both their personal and professional...
Individuals with depression often experience challenges in both their personal and professional...
96
01:29Psychological and Sociocultural Causes of Schizophrenia
82
Schizophrenia, a complex psychiatric disorder, has been historically misunderstood. Early psychological theories attributed its origins to childhood trauma and unresponsive parenting. However, contemporary research largely rejects these notions, favoring the vulnerability-stress hypothesis. This model proposes that individuals with a genetic predisposition to schizophrenia may develop the disorder following exposure to significant environmental stressors. Notably, studies on high-risk...
82
01:27CNS Depressants: Alcohol and Nicotine
201
Ethanol, a clear colorless alcohol, has been consumed by humans for millennia, but its effects on the body are far from benign. At lower doses, it induces decreased inhibitions and loquaciousness, leading to its social appeal. However, it can cause severe consequences at higher doses, such as coma and respiratory depression, due to its zero-order elimination kinetics. Chronic ethanol abuse wreaks havoc on multiple organ systems, particularly the CNS and the liver. Abrupt cessation of ethanol...
201