Associations of night shift work with weight gain among female nurses in The Netherlands: results of a prospective cohort study

Sep 2, 2024Scandinavian journal of work, environment & health

Night shift work linked to weight gain in female nurses in the Netherlands

AI simplified

Circadian Biology on OpenScience ↗PubMed ↗DOI ↗

Abstract

Working night shifts was associated with a 7% increased risk of weight gain over six years.

The association between night shift work and weight gain was found primarily in postmenopausal women.
Postmenopausal women who worked an average of four or more nights per month had a higher risk of gaining over 5% of their weight.
Risk of weight gain increased with the number of consecutive nights worked, with a 37% higher risk for those working four or more consecutive nights.
Night shift work was linked to a greater likelihood of developing overweight or obesity in postmenopausal women with a healthy weight at the study's start.

AI simplified

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to prospectively investigate associations of working night shifts with weight gain in the Nightingale Study, a large cohort of female nurses.

METHODS: This study included 36 273 registered nurses, who completed questionnaires in 2011 and 2017. Cumulative number of nights, mean number of nights/month and consecutive number of nights/month in 2007-2011 were assessed. We used Poisson regression to estimate multivariable-adjusted incidence rate ratios (IRR) of >5% weight gain from 2011 to 2017 among all participants and assess risk of development of overweight/obesity (BMI≥25 kg/m) among women with healthy baseline body mass index. The reference group consisted of women who never worked nights. 2

RESULTS: Overall, working night shifts in 2007-2011 was associated with >5% weight gain [IRR 1.07, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.01-1.13]. Associations differed by menopausal status in 2011, with an increased risk of gaining >5% weight limited to postmenopausal women who worked nights (IRR 1.23, 95% CI 1.10-1.38). Postmenopausal women had an increased risk of >5% weight gain when they worked on average ≥4 nights/month (4-5: IRR 1.29, 95% CI 1.09-1.52, ≥6: IRR 1.27, 95% CI 1.11-1.47) or ≥4 consecutive nights/month (IRR 1.37, 95% CI 1.19-1.58), compared to postmenopausal women who never worked nights. For postmenopausal women with healthy weight at baseline, night shift work was associated with an increased risk of overweight/obesity at follow-up (IRR 1.24, 95% CI 1.03-1.50).

CONCLUSIONS: Working night shifts was associated with a slightly increased risk of weight gain and overweight/obesity development among women who were postmenopausal at study inclusion. Our findings emphasize the importance of health promotion to maintain a healthy weight among (postmenopausal) night workers.

Full Text

We can’t show the full text here under this license. Use the link below to read it at the source.

View on DOI ↗View on PubMed ↗

Associations of night shift work with weight gain among female nurses in The Netherlands: results of a prospective cohort study

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