Why night shift leads to weight gain and diabetes

When I was just a kid, my father worked daytime hours, outside in construction. He was always thin and fit, with lots of energy to play with my sister and me.

Then, when I entered high school, he took a new job — one that required him to work nights.

Suddenly, he began to gain weight.

While he tried to eat healthy and still focused on getting exercise during the day, his weight continued to go up. He said it seemed that no matter what he did, the pounds were easy to put on and impossible to take off.

Eventually, he was even diagnosed with type 2 diabetes.

In his mind, the issue all started with his move to working the night shift.

And as it turns out — he was right.

Shift work leads to chronic metabolic conditions

A study from scientists at Washington State University and the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory has found the link that proves that flipping your biological clock on its head by working nights and sleeping days is a recipe for disaster.

Their study used volunteers who were put on simulated night or day shift schedules for three days. Then, after their last shift, each person was asked to stay awake for 24 hours under constant conditions of lighting, temperature, posture and food intake in order to accurately measure their internal biological rhythms.

That measurement was done via blood samples that allowed the researchers to take a deep dive into how shift work affects proteins that are found in the cells of the immune system.

And the results clearly showed why night shift workers are so much more likely to suffer from obesity, diabetes and other chronic metabolic conditions than people who work during the day.

The scientists found that when you work at night, there is nearly a complete reversal in glucose rhythms, which has a significant negative impact on blood glucose regulation.

Additionally, they discovered that processes involved in insulin production and sensitivity, which normally work together to keep glucose levels within a healthy range, were no longer synchronized in night-shift participants.

The researchers say this effect can initially be a healthy response since it’s caused by the regulation of insulin trying to undo the glucose changes triggered by the night shift schedule. However, in the long run, it puts diabetes on the table.

 “What we showed is that we can really see a difference in molecular patterns between volunteers with normal schedules and those with schedules that are misaligned with their biological clock,” said Jason McDermott, a computational scientist and researcher.

The damage is almost immediate

If those results alone weren’t scary enough, the researchers have one more warning for night shift workers everywhere.

The changes seen in the study that can lead to metabolic damage are almost immediate.

In fact, the study shows that these disrupted rhythms related to blood glucose regulation, energy metabolism and inflammation can be seen in as little as three days.

This means that in as little as three days, night shift work can put you on the road to developing a chronic metabolic condition.

Reducing the risks of shift work

So if you’re stuck doing shift work, is there a way to fight back against these metabolic risks?

Luckily, there are a few options provided by past research.

These include:

• Upping your vitamin D levels – It’s been shown that higher levels of the sunshine vitamin, which could be in short supply in your body if you work at night, are associated with lower numbers on your scale. So be sure to get out in the bright morning sun when you can and take a quality D3 supplement.
• Adding in vitamin E – If you’re already living with obesity or another metabolic syndrome, you could be vitamin E deficient, preventing vitamin D from working its weight loss magic.
• Protecting your vitamin E – Vitamin C has been shown to guard vitamin E against lipid peroxidation. This prevents an antioxidant cascade that leads to inflammation, obesity and metabolic syndrome.
• Switching to stevia – Research has shown that the natural sweetener, stevia, is a natural alternative for treating obesity, hypertension and elevated levels of blood sugar and lipids, all disorders associated with metabolic syndrome. Just be sure to buy 100 percent stevia not mixed with erythritol, as some may be.

Additionally, I recommend checking out the recommendations of my colleague, Joyce Hollman, on how to shift the heart disease, diabetes and stroke risk of shift work to avoid serious health issues.

Sources:

Study shows how night shift work can raise risk of diabetes, obesity — EurekAlert!