Does Night Shift Make You Gain Weight?

Does Shift Work Make You Gain Weight? Quick answer – Yeah, it can. But why does it impact us more than the 9-5 cousins? Shift workers, particularly those who work nights and struggle to sleep during the day, who receive less than 7 hours sleep a night, are at a higher risk of weight gain due to sleep deprivation.

Switching from the day shift to working evenings or nights may affect your waistline, according to a new study from Australia, part of a growing body of research indicating working at night can lead to weight gain.

In fact, a study out of Chronobiology International found that working the night shift was an independent contributor to weight gain and abdominal obesity. Sometimes, burning the midnight oil is inevitable, but it doesn’t have to stand between you and your goal physique.

A dietitian who was not involved in the study agreed. “We’ve recognized for years that when people go on the night shift, they gain weight,” said Lauri Wright, an assistant professor at the University of South Florida in Tampa.

Working the night shift burns less energy and increases risk of weight gain. People who work the night shift are likely burning less energy during a 24-hour period than those on a normal schedule, increasing their risk for weight gain and obesity, according to a new study led by the University of Colorado Boulder.

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• Stick as closely as possible to a normal day and night pattern of food intake
• Aim for three satisfying meals across a 24 hour period
• It’s best to avoid or minimise eating between midnight and 6am and try to eat at the beginning and end of the shift
• Avoid large meals for 1-2 hours prior to sleep

Part 2 of 3: Making Time for Exercise

1. Exercise at work, if possible. Moving more throughout your shift can help you keep unwanted weight off.
2. Work time for exercise into your schedule. Many people who work night shifts have an erratic schedule.
3. Get an appropriate amount of exercise in each week.
4. Ease into a workout routine if you’ve been inactive for awhile.

Why do nurses work night shifts?

There are many reasons to enjoy working the night shift if you’re a nurse—many times you can earn more money, less management is present, the patient visitations slow down , less tests are being administered and fewer phone calls are being made. However, one of the most dreadful parts of working the night shift for many nurses is …

Since you’re sleeping during the day time, make sure you are sleeping in a darkened area, to encourage the regular functioning of your circadian rhythms and hormone releases. Turn your phone and devices of before you get ready to retire to bed so you can avoid disruptions. Also, try to get at least 7 hours of sleep. Experts say that’s the magic number needed to function properly and feel well rested.

Several nurses complain of weight gain when working the night shift, and over the years, plenty of research has shown that this is a real problem. According to a study published in the May 2012 issue Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, an experiment conducted with 2,000 Australian nurses found that nurses who switched from the day shift to the night shift gained weight over a two-year period, with their Body Mass Index increasing my 0.5 units. ( http://www.livescience.com/36375-night-shift-weight-gain-bmi.html)

To put things into perspective, a person with a BMI of 25 to 30 is considered overweight, anything over 30 is considered obese. Nurses who switched from night time to day time experienced weight loss and lowered their BMI by 3 units.

Why do night shifters gain weight?

Night shift workers may gain weight because their biological clocks are disrupted , Zhao said. Studies have shown that people who work …

Night shift workers may gain weight because their biological clocks are disrupted , Zhao said. Studies have shown that people who work at night produce less leptin, a hormone that signals the body to stop eating, and more cortisol, which has been linked to obesity, Zhao said.

Switching to Night Shift May Cause Weight Gain. Switching from the day shift to working evenings or nights may affect your waistline, according to a new study from Australia, part of a growing body of research indicating working at night can lead to weight gain.

In addition, the researchers did not know at what point during the study the participants changed shifts. The study is published in the May issue of the Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine. Pass it on: Switching shifts from day to night may cause weight gain, while switching from night to day may lead to weight loss.

Why does shift work cause weight gain?

Shift work is tough on the body. Not getting consistent, uninterrupted sleep or enough sleep (7 to 9 hours per24-hour period) throws your body’s neatly-calibrated system into disarray.

Over the course of a year, thats 50 pounds or more of weight gain, which is likely to make you obese. Obesity is about much more than vanity. Overweight shift workers are at an increased risk for developing high cholesterol, high blood pressure, heart disease, and many other serious conditions.

Throughout the day, appetite-regulating hormones work in concert with melatonin (the sleep hormone) to dictate when you should be hungry and when you might want to take a nap.

Researchers estimate that shift workers consume about 600 extra calories per day.

7 Tips for Night Shift Weight Loss. Remember, the #1 reason you’re hungry and putting on weight is sleep deprivation. Many of the tips in this list focus on how shift workers can get better sleep. Avoid caffeine later in your shift. The half-life of caffeine is about 6 hours, which means it takes 12 hours to eliminate all traces …

If you’re a shift worker particularly, a night shift worker you’re fighting your body’s natural signals. Instead of entering deep sleep at 2:00 A.M., for example, you’re three hours into your graveyard shift, reaching for a Diet Coke and a candy bar to help you stay awake.

On top of that, the disruptions to your circadian rhythm can throw off your body’s hormonal balance, making you more likely to overeat high-calorie foods .Gaining weight is a serious side effect of taking shift work. Fortunately, by making some simple adjustments, you can start losing the extra pounds or at the very least, maintain your current weight .