Is shift work associated with a higher risk of overweight or obesity? A systematic review of observational studies with meta-analysis

Jun 1, 2018International journal of epidemiology

Is shift work linked to higher chances of being overweight or obese? A review and combined analysis of studies

AI simplified

Circadian Biology on OpenScience ↗PubMed ↗DOI ↗

Abstract

Shift work is associated with a 25% increased risk of overweight and a 17% increased risk of obesity.

A total of 26 studies with 311,334 participants were analyzed.
The studies included 7 cohort studies, 18 cross-sectional studies, and 1 case-control study.
Heterogeneity was substantial due to varying definitions of overweight and obesity among the studies.
The risk of overweight was estimated at a relative risk of 1.25, while the risk of obesity was estimated at 1.17.

AI simplified

BACKGROUND: An increasing number of original studies suggest that exposure to shift work could be associated with the risk of overweight and obesity, but the results remain conflicted and inconclusive. This study aimed to quantitatively synthesize available epidemiological evidence on the association between shift work and the risk of overweight and obesity by a meta-analysis.

METHODS: The authors searched PubMed, Embase and the reference lists of all included studies up to April 2017, with a verification search in December 2017. Inclusion criteria were original studies that reported odds ratios, relative risks or hazard ratios (ORs, RRs or HRs, respectively) of at least one outcome of overweight or obesity. Summary risk estimates were calculated by random-effect models.

RESULTS: Twenty-six studies (7 cohort studies, 18 cross-sectional studies and 1 case-control study) involving 311 334 participants were identified. Among these studies, the cut-off points of overweight and obesity varied greatly, so the heterogeneity was substantial; however, the results were stable. Shift work was found to be positively associated with the risk of overweight [RR: 1.25; 95% confidence interval (95% CI): 1.08-1.44] and obesity (RR: 1.17; 95% CI: 1.12-1.22).

CONCLUSIONS: Individuals involved in shift work are more likely to become overweight or obese. Appropriate preventive interventions in the organization of shift schedules according to ergonomic criteria would allow shift workers to avoid potential health impairment.

Full Text

Full text is available at the source.

View full text ↗

Is shift work associated with a higher risk of overweight or obesity? A systematic review of observational studies with meta-analysis

Abstract

Full Text

You found one interesting study. We’ll send the next 7.

what lands in your inbox each week:

Recent issues from the circadian biology brief

Abstract

Full Text

Related papers

You found one interesting study. We’ll send the next 7.

what lands in your inbox each week:

Recent issues from the circadian biology brief