The Adverse Health Effects of Shift Work in Relation to Risk of Illness/Disease: A Review
Open accessAbstract
Summary: Biological rhythm of sleeping is a natural disparity in an organism corresponding to and in reply to cyclic environmental changes, such as daylight hours and hours of darkness or elevated and low down flow. There is some evidence, based upon epidemiological studies as well as studies upon smaller groups of subjects, that individuals who work during the night and sleep during the daytime show cognitive impairment at work, have poorer and fragmented daytime sleep, and have increased risks of developing a wide range of social, psychological, physiological and medical impairments and disorders. Circadian rhythms are one of the most important effective factors on the physiological and physical performances of humans and disturbing this normal rhythm leads to different groups of diseases. The majority of investigations in biological rhythm demeanor vary noticeably in regards to the exact type of disease, population and protocols of sampling over the other outcomes or issues. We conducted a systematic review of [Science Direct, Pubmed, Scopus] to identify influence of different kinds of diseases among shift workers in response to abnormal rhythm of sleeping. The results of this review indicate that abnormal patterns of sleeping can lead to immunological issues, hypertension, metabolic syndrome, insomnia, cardiovascular disease, obesity and depression. It is vital for subsequent investigations to find a way to reduce negative effects (such as decreased amount of works’ time and altered diet) without side effects to help them.
Integrity signals
Registry
Cites
Statistics
Claims the paper makes
Claims other papers make about this one
Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?
Operational realities can be exacerbated by fatigue, understaffing, and shift work.
“The operational realities can be exacerbated by fatigue, understaffing, and shift work [12,38,39,40,41,42].”
From Canadian Public Safety Personnel and Occupational Stressors: How PSP Interpret Stressors on Duty (2020) · cites this paper as [41]
Cites
2013 ESH/ESC Guidelines for the management of arterial hypertension
Authors Task Force Members, Mancia, G., Fagard, R., Narkiewicz, K., Redon, J., Zanchetti, A., Böhm, M., Christiaens, T., Cífková, R., Backer, G. D., et al. (2013) · European Heart Journal · doi:10.1093/eurheartj/eht151 · Cited by 13,638 · see citing works
Chobanian, A. V., Bakris, G. L., Black, H. R., Cushman, W. C., Green, L. A., Izzo, J. L., Jones, D. W., Materson, B. J., Oparil, S., Wright, J. T., et al. (2003) · Hypertension · doi:10.1161/01.hyp.0000107251.49515.c2 · Cited by 13,271 · see citing works
IARC Monographs on the Evaluation of Carcinogenic Risks to Humans
Zuckerman, A. J. (1995) · Journal of Clinical Pathology · doi:10.1136/jcp.48.7.691-a · Cited by 8,761 · see citing works
Guidelines Committee (2003) · Journal of Hypertension · doi:10.1097/00004872-200306000-00001 · Cited by 3,015 · see citing works
Mancia, G., Rosei, E. A., Cífková, R., DeBacker, G., Erdine, S. E., Fagard, R., Farsang, C., Heagerty, A. M., Kawecka-Jaszcs, K., Kiowski, W., et al. (2003) · Lirias (KU Leuven) · doi:10.1097/01.hjh.0000059051.65882.32 · Cited by 2,601 · see citing works
A Critical Review of the Job Demands-Resources Model: Implications for Improving Work and Health
Schaufeli, W. B., & Taris, T. W. (2014) · Bridging Occupational, Organizational and Public Health · doi:10.1007/978-94-007-5640-3_4 · Cited by 2,261 · see citing works
IARC monographs on the evaluation of carcinogenic risks to humans
(1989) · Food and Chemical Toxicology · doi:10.1016/0278-6915(89)90053-7 · Cited by 1,462 · see citing works
Health disorders of shift workers
Knutsson, A. (2003) · Occupational Medicine · doi:10.1093/occmed/kqg048 · Cited by 1,218 · see citing works
Karlsson, B., Knutsson, A., & Lindahl, B. (2001) · Occupational and Environmental Medicine · doi:10.1136/oem.58.11.747 · Cited by 924 · see citing works
Health effects of shift work and extended hours of work
Harrington, J. M. (2001) · Occupational and Environmental Medicine · doi:10.1136/oem.58.1.68 · Cited by 703 · see citing works
Shift work, risk factors and cardiovascular disease
Bøggild, H., & Knutsson, A. (1999) · Scandinavian Journal of Work Environment & Health · doi:10.5271/sjweh.410 · Cited by 674 · see citing works
Colberg (2010) · doi:10.2337/dc10-1548 · Cited by 656 · see citing works
Shift work and chronic disease: the epidemiological evidence
Wang, X.-S., Armstrong, M. E. G., Cairns, B. J., Key, T. J., & Travis, R. C. (2011) · Occupational Medicine · doi:10.1093/occmed/kqr001 · Cited by 640 · see citing works
Qualitative Research in Action
May, T. (2002) · SAGE Publications Ltd eBooks · doi:10.4135/9781849209656 · Cited by 555 · see citing works
Eating and shift work - effects on habits, metabolism and performance
Lowden, A., Moreno, C., Holmbäck, U., Lennernäs, M., & Tucker, P. (2010) · Scandinavian Journal of Work, Environment & Health · doi:10.5271/sjweh.2898 · Cited by 492 · see citing works
Backé, E.-M., Seidler, A., Latza, U., Rossnagel, K., & Schumann, B. (2011) · International Archives of Occupational and Environmental Health · doi:10.1007/s00420-011-0643-6 · Cited by 483 · see citing works
European Society of Hypertension Practice Guidelines for home blood pressure monitoring
Parati, G., Stergiou, G. S., Asmar, R., Bilo, G., de Leeuw, P., Imai, Y., Kario, K., Lurbe, E., Manolis, A., Mengden, T., et al. (2010) · Journal of Human Hypertension · doi:10.1038/jhh.2010.54 · Cited by 482 · see citing works
Individual differences in tolerance to shift work – A systematic review
Saksvik, I. B., Bjorvatn, B., Hetland, H., Sandal, G. M., & Pallesen, S. (2011) · Sleep Medicine Reviews · doi:10.1016/j.smrv.2010.07.002 · Cited by 479 · see citing works
Rotating shift work and the metabolic syndrome: a prospective study
De Bacquer, D., Van Risseghem, M., Clays, E., Kittel, F., De Backer, G., & Braeckman, L. (2009) · International Journal of Epidemiology · doi:10.1093/ije/dyn360 · Cited by 394 · see citing works
Workhours in relation to work stress, recovery and health
Härmä, M. (2006) · Scandinavian Journal of Work Environment & Health · doi:10.5271/sjweh.1055 · Cited by 387 · see citing works
Shift work: coping with the biological clock.
Arendt, J. (2010) · Occupational Medicine · doi:10.1093/occmed/kqp162 · Cited by 308 · see citing works
Exercise, Energy Balance and the Shift Worker
Atkinson, G., Fullick, S., Grindey, C., & MacLaren, D. P. M. (2008) · Sports Medicine · doi:10.2165/00007256-200838080-00005 · Cited by 250 · see citing works
Frost, P., Kolstad, H. A., & Bonde, J. P. (2009) · Scandinavian Journal of Work Environment & Health · doi:10.5271/sjweh.1319 · Cited by 245 · see citing works
Shift work and cancer – considerations on rationale, mechanisms, and epidemiology
Costa, G., Haus, E., & Stevens, R. (2010) · Scandinavian Journal of Work, Environment & Health · doi:10.5271/sjweh.2899 · Cited by 241 · see citing works
Kolstad, H. A. (2008) · Scandinavian Journal of Work Environment & Health · doi:10.5271/sjweh.1194 · Cited by 208 · see citing works
A meta-analysis on dose–response relationship between night shift work and the risk of breast cancer
Wang, F., Yeung, K.-W., Chan, W. C., Kwok, C. C.-H., Leung, S.-L., Wu, Ç., Chan, E. Y. Y., Yu, I. T.-S., Yang, X. R., & Tse, L. A. (2013) · Annals of Oncology · doi:10.1093/annonc/mdt283 · Cited by 197 · see citing works
The effects of shift work on body weight change − a systematic review of longitudinal studies
van Drongelen, A., Boot, C., Merkus, S., Smid, T., & Beek, A. J. (2011) · Scandinavian Journal of Work, Environment & Health · doi:10.5271/sjweh.3143 · Cited by 197 · see citing works
Barger, L. K., Lockley, S. W., Rajaratnam, S. M. W., & Landrigan, C. P. (2009) · Current Neurology and Neuroscience Reports · doi:10.1007/s11910-009-0024-7 · Cited by 184 · see citing works
Shift work and cardiovascular risk factors: New knowledge from the past decade
Esquirol, Y., Perret, B., Ruidavets, J. B., Marquié, J. C., Diène, E., Niezborala, M., & Ferrières, J. (2011) · Archives of cardiovascular diseases · doi:10.1016/j.acvd.2011.09.004 · Cited by 173 · see citing works
Markers of insulin resistance in day and shift workers aged 30-59 years
Nagaya, T., Yoshida, H., Takahashi, H., & Kawai, M. (2002) · International Archives of Occupational and Environmental Health · doi:10.1007/s00420-002-0370-0 · Cited by 158 · see citing works
Altered sleep/wake patterns and mental performance
Åkerstedt, T. (2006) · Physiology & Behavior · doi:10.1016/j.physbeh.2006.09.007 · Cited by 119 · see citing works
Shift-work and cardiovascular disease: a population-based 22-year follow-up study
Hublin, C., Partinen, M., Koskenvuo, K., Silventoinen, K., Koskenvuo, M., & Kaprio, J. (2010) · European Journal of Epidemiology · doi:10.1007/s10654-010-9439-3 · Cited by 117 · see citing works
Neuroendocrine, immune and oxidative stress in shift workers
Faraut, B., Bayon, V., & Léger, D. (2013) · Sleep Medicine Reviews · doi:10.1016/j.smrv.2012.12.006 · Cited by 112 · see citing works
Gumenyuk, V., Roth, T. G., & Drake, C. L. (2012) · Chronobiology International · doi:10.3109/07420528.2012.699356 · Cited by 111 · see citing works
OBESITY AND HIGH BLOOD PRESSURE OF 12-HOUR NIGHT SHIFT FEMALE CLEAN-ROOM WORKERS
Chen, J., Lin, Y.-C., & Hsiao, S.-T. (2010) · Chronobiology International · doi:10.3109/07420520903502242 · Cited by 105 · see citing works
Wilson, J. F. (1993) · Applied Ergonomics · doi:10.1016/0003-6870(93)90145-y · Cited by 104 · see citing works
Diurnal Variations in Physical Performances Related to Football in Young Soccer Players
Chtourou, H., Hammouda, O., Souissi, H., Chamari, K., Chaouachi, A., & Souissi, N. (2012) · Asian Journal of Sports Medicine · doi:10.5812/asjsm.34604 · Cited by 91 · see citing works
HU, G., Jousilahti, P., Antikaínen, R., & Tuomilehto, J. O. (2007) · American Journal of Hypertension · doi:10.1016/j.amjhyper.2007.07.015 · Cited by 89 · see citing works
The healthy-worker effect: Self-selection among Swedish shift workers
Knutsson, A., & Akerstedt, T. (1992) · Work & Stress · doi:10.1080/02678379208260350 · Cited by 85 · see citing works
Folkard, S., & Th, M. (1992) · Cited by 79 · see citing works
Kawakami, N., Haratani, T., & Araki, S. (1998) · International Archives of Occupational and Environmental Health · doi:10.1007/s004200050302 · Cited by 76 · see citing works
Willis, T. A., O'Connor, D. B., & Smith, L. (2008) · Work & Stress · doi:10.1080/02678370802180558 · Cited by 72 · see citing works
Cabrera, N. L., & Leckie, J. O. (2009) · Hispanic Journal of Behavioral Sciences · doi:10.1177/0739986309331877 · Cited by 62 · see citing works
Does individual choice determine shift system acceptability?
Barton, J., Smith, L., Totterdell, P., Spelten, E. R., & Folkard, S. (1993) · Ergonomics · doi:10.1080/00140139308967859 · Cited by 56 · see citing works
Burgueño, A., Gemma, C., Gianotti, T. F., Sookoian, S., & Pirola, C. J. (2010) · Atherosclerosis · doi:10.1016/j.atherosclerosis.2009.12.032 · Cited by 53 · see citing works
Physical and mental fatigue as predictors of sickness absence among Norwegian nurses
Roelen, C. A. M., Bültmann, U., Groothoff, J. W., van Rhenen, W., Magerøy, N., Moen, B. E., Pallesen, S., & Bjorvatn, B. (2013) · Research in Nursing & Health · doi:10.1002/nur.21558 · Cited by 52 · see citing works
Holtermann, A., Mortensen, O. S., Burr, H., Søgaard, K., Gyntelberg, F., & Suadicani, P. (2010) · Heart · doi:10.1136/hrt.2010.197145 · Cited by 52 · see citing works
Work stress and immune system: lymphocyte reactions during rotating shift work. Preliminary results.
Curti, R., Radice, L., Cesana, G. C., Zanettini, R., & Grieco, A. (1982) · PubMed · Cited by 17 · see citing works
Internal locus of control and choice in health service shift workers
Smith, L., Jeppesen, H. J., & Bøggild, H. (2007) · Ergonomics · doi:10.1080/00140130701365732 · Cited by 16 · see citing works
Working time arrangements and social consequences – What do we know?
Albertsen, K., Tómasson, K., Rafnsdóttir, G. L., Kauppinen, K., Sørensen, B. A., & Grimsmo, A. (2008) · TemaNord · doi:10.6027/tn2007-607 · Cited by 15 · see citing works
Rail signallers' assessments of their satisfaction with different shift work systems
Ryan, B., Wilson, J. R., Sharples, S., Kenvyn, F., & Clarke, T. (2008) · Ergonomics · doi:10.1080/00140130802331591 · Cited by 10 · see citing works
Erren, T. C., Herbst, C., Koch, M. S., Fritschi, L., Foster, R. G., Driscoll, T. R., Costa, G., Sallinen, M., & Liira, J. (2013) · Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews · doi:10.1002/14651858.cd010639 · Cited by 9 · see citing works
The healthy-worker effect: A self-selection among Swedish shift workers
Knutsson, A., & Åkerstedt, T. (1993) · Journal of Safety Research · doi:10.1016/0022-4375(93)90018-i · Cited by 8 · see citing works
Strength-training and biological rhythm of male sex hormone among judoists
Shariat, A., Kargarfard, M., Tamrin, S. B. M., Danaee, M., & Karimi, H. (2014) · Biological Rhythm Research · doi:10.1080/09291016.2014.884304 · Cited by 7 · see citing works
Self-citation
Flagged first, then by citations
1 of the 56 references couldn’t be matched to a known paper.
Cited by
Sorted by citations
Harvey, S. B., Modini, M., Joyce, S., Milligan-Saville, J. S., Tan, L., Mykletun, A., Bryant, R. A., Christensen, H., & Mitchell, P. B. (2017) · Occupational and Environmental Medicine · doi:10.1136/oemed-2016-104015 · Cited by 799 · see citing works
State of the evidence 2017: an update on the connection between breast cancer and the environment
Gray, J., Rasanayagam, S., Engel, C. L., & Rizzo, J. (2017) · Environmental Health · doi:10.1186/s12940-017-0287-4 · Cited by 230 · see citing works
Canadian Public Safety Personnel and Occupational Stressors: How PSP Interpret Stressors on Duty
Ricciardelli, R., Czarnuch, S., Carleton, R. N., Gacek, J., & Shewmake, J. (2020) · International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health · doi:10.3390/ijerph17134736 · Cited by 62 · see citing works
Analysis and mapping of global research publications on shift work (2012–2021)
Sweileh, W. M. (2022) · Journal of Occupational Medicine and Toxicology · doi:10.1186/s12995-022-00364-0 · Cited by 47 · see citing works
The application of a feasible exercise training program in the office setting
Shariat, A., Lam, E. T. C., Kargarfard, M., Tamrin, S. B. M., & Danaee, M. (2017) · Work · doi:10.3233/wor-172508 · Cited by 39 · see citing works
Self-citationKim, J., Park, J. H., & Park, S. H. (2019) · International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health · doi:10.3390/ijerph16050799 · Cited by 27 · see citing works
Sweeney, E., Yu, Z., Dummer, T., Cui, Y., DeClercq, V., Forbes, C. C., Grandy, S. A., Keats, M. R., Parker, L., & Adisesh, A. (2019) · International Archives of Occupational and Environmental Health · doi:10.1007/s00420-019-01459-8 · Cited by 18 · see citing works
Prevalence and Influencing Factors of Irritable Bowel Syndrome in Medical Staff: A Meta-Analysis
Liu, H., Zou, Y., Kan, Y., Li, X., & Zhang, Y. (2022) · Digestive Diseases and Sciences · doi:10.1007/s10620-022-07401-2 · Cited by 16 · see citing works
Albakri, U., Smeets, N., Drotos, E., Kant, I., Gabrio, A., & Meertens, R. M. (2024) · Work · doi:10.3233/wor-230500 · Cited by 9 · see citing works
Occupational physical and emotional fitness
Shariat, A. (2018) · Work · doi:10.3233/wor-182696 · Cited by 7 · see citing works
Self-citationComparing Exercise Prescription Methods in Knee Osteoarthritis Patients in Malaysia
D’Gasper, D., Bains, B. S., Sadeghi, H., & Kumar, P. (2018) · Acta Medica Bulgarica · doi:10.2478/amb-2018-0005 · Cited by 5 · see citing works
Self-citationAlonzo, R., Anderson, K. K., Rodrigues, R., Klar, N. S., Chiodini, P., Montero‐Odasso, M., & Stranges, S. (2022) · International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health · doi:10.3390/ijerph191610124 · Cited by 5 · see citing works
Trunk Flexibility Improvement in Response to Powered Assisted Exercise
Bains, B. S., Kaur, G., Sadeghi, H., Husain, A., & Singh, K. (2016) · International Journal of Kinesiology and Sports Science · doi:10.7575/aiac.ijkss.v.4n.3p.50 · Cited by 3 · see citing works
Self-citationNjaka, S., Yusoff, D. M., Kueh, Y. C., Anua, S. M., & Edeogu, C. O. (2023) · SAGE Open · doi:10.1177/21582440231220169 · Cited by 3 · see citing works
Package of Office Exercise Training as a New Idea for Office Workers.
Shariat, A., Tamrin, S. B. M., Arumugam, M., Ramasamy, R., & Danaee, M. (2016) · Europe PMC (PubMed Central) · Cited by 3 · see citing works
Self-citationImpact of atypical working hours on sleep and mood among healthcare workers
Saïd, H. B., Hajjem, L., Youssef, I., Brahim, D., Mersni, M., Youssfi, I., Bahri, G., Mechergui, N., & Ladhari, N. (2023) · Work · doi:10.3233/wor-220616 · Cited by 2 · see citing works
Halabchi, F., Hosseini, L., Zebardast, J., & Barghi, T. S. (2018) · Asian Journal of Sports Medicine · doi:10.5812/asjsm.59339 · Cited by 2 · see citing works
Amirah, F. (2023) · Russian Law Journal · doi:10.52783/rlj.v11i4s.822 · Cited by 3 · see citing works
Exploration of the adverse effects of shift work in a multicultural environment
Bures, M., Cadkova, V., & Altunpinar, A. (2019) · Work · doi:10.3233/wor-182934 · Cited by 1 · see citing works
Exploration of the adverse effects of shift work in a multicultural environment
Bures, M., Cadkova, V., & Altunpinar, A. (2019) · Work · doi:10.3233/wor-192934 · Cited by 1 · see citing works
Shakerian, M., Yazdanirad, S., Khoshakhlagh, A. H., & Mousavi, S. M. (2024) · International Journal of Environmental Health Engineering · doi:10.4103/ijehe.ijehe_24_24 · Cited by 1 · see citing works
Bures, M., Machova, A., & Altunpinar, A. (2018) · Advances in intelligent systems and computing · doi:10.1007/978-3-319-96080-7_20 · Cited by 1 · see citing works
Vendor Selection Risk Management Framework in Automotive Industry
Mohtasham, K., Aziz, F. A., & Ariffin, M. K. A. M. (2016) · International Journal of Mechanical Engineering and Applications · doi:10.11648/j.ijmea.s.2015030301.19
Bains, B. S. (2018) · Rehabilitation Science · doi:10.11648/j.rs.20180301.13
Kanno, K., Hoshino, H., Mori, Y., Takahashi, Y., Suzutani, K., Shiga, T., Kakamu, T., Itagaki, S., Miura, I., & Yabe, H. (2025) · Industrial Health · doi:10.2486/indhealth.2025-0017
Impact of night work on workers’ sleep, mood and quality of life
Youssfi, I., Themri, I., Mechergui, N., Khemila, T., Mhiri, I., & Ladhari, N. (2026) · Work · doi:10.1177/10519815261417656
- Authors
- Shariat, A., Bahri Mohd Tamrin, S., Daneshjoo, A., & Sadeghi, H.
- Affiliations
- Universiti Putra Malaysia (MY)
- Department of Environmental and Occupational Health, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, University Putra Malaysia
- Shahid Bahonar University of Kerman (IR)
- Venue
- Acta Medica Bulgarica
- Publisher
- Walter de Gruyter GmbH
- Published
- 2015-05-01
- Volume
- 42
- Issue
- 1
- Pages
- 63-72
- ISSN
- 0324-1750 (ISSN-L)
- OpenAlex
- W606754172
- Cited by
- 26
- References
- 56
- Citations by year
- 2026: 1 · 2025: 1 · 2024: 2 · 2023: 3 · 2022: 3 · 2020: 1 · 2019: 4 · 2018: 5 · 2017: 3 · 2016: 3
- FWCI
- 5.53
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- diamond
- doi.org
- Licence
- Locations
- Acta Medica Bulgarica (publishedVersion, cc-by-nc-nd)
- DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion, cc-by-sa)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Sleep and Work-Related Fatigue
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Endocrine and Autonomic Systems › Circadian rhythm and melatonin
- Health Sciences › Health Professions › General Health Professions › Workplace Health and Well-being
- Keywords
- shift work, circadian rhythm disruption, sleep disruption, night shift work, disease risk, hypertension, metabolic syndrome, insomnia, cardiovascular disease, obesity, depression, immune function, cognitive impairment
About these checks
Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.
Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.
Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.
What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›
Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review