“Night shifts can disrupt the body’s natural circadian rhythm, putting you at increased risk for developing cardiovascular disease, obesity, sleep problems and diabetes,” said Garima Goyal, a nutritionist
“Yes, night shifts can disrupt the body’s natural circadian rhythm and affect the quality of sleep. There is also an increased risk of cardiovascular disease, obesity, gastrointestinal disorders (hyperacidity, diarrhea, constipation), sleep problems and diabetes. Working late and not getting enough sleep can also affect mental health, causing depression, anxiety, anger, frustration and irritability,” says Garima Goyal.
How to cope with night shifts
Here are some managing strategies for working after dark.
- Exercise good sleep hygiene.
Exercise good sleep hygiene by keeping a regular sleep schedule and creating a terrain that’s conducive to a good night’s sleep. This can help you avoid shift work sleep complaints, a common circadian meter problem that can beget both wakefulness and inordinate somnolence in those who work the late shift.
- Use caffeine wisely:
Most of us calculate a certain quantity of caffeine to wake up and stay productive. Caffeine can ameliorate memory, mood, and physical performance. Whether your medicine of choice is coffee, black tea, or dark chocolate, it’s fine to consume it — as long as you stop before you come jittery and threaded out.
- Stay hydrated:
Coupled with eating healthy, staying doused will help keep you energized and alert. Avoid sticky tonics and fruit authorities, which will make your blood sugar shaft and also crash.
- Nap effectively:
Taking well-timed naps during a shift can help night workers increase alertness and reduce the threat of committing crimes.
- Exercise:
Since working the night shift may increase your threat of heart complaints and other conditions, it’s important to borrow a harmonious exercise routine. A well-rounded exercise program that includes cardio, strength, and inflexibility training can reduce your threat of developing heart complaints and other habitual health conditions, help you maintain a healthy weight, and ameliorate your mood and cognitive functioning.
- Limit stress:
Working the night shift can have an adverse cerebral impact on nurses, so it’s important to laboriously concentrate on your internal health. Consider espousing tone-care practices similar to planning or journaling — that will allow you time to tone- reflect, reconnect with yourself, and understand how you’re feeling.
Echoing the same, Anjali Mukerjee, an Ayurveda expert, had before taken to Instagram to say that working late at night can disrupt the “ 24- hour internal timepiece that controls our sleep-wake cycles ” and can also lead to an imbalance in hormone products.
The experts further informed that the body’s capability to reuse glucose and sugar is bloodied at night, which increases the threat of developing diabetes and heart conditions. To help keep similar affections at bay, Anjali Mukherjee listed some tips to maintain good health and nutrition while working late at night.
Here are some of the tips given below
* Since the body’s metabolism and digestion are slow at night, eat light before sleeping; in the morning, have a balanced mess comprising carbohydrates, protein, and fat.
* Eat every 4 hours to keep your weight in check( eat nothing in between) and try to eat lower reflections so that you’re more alert.
* Keep healthy snacks like fruits, nuts, roasted chana, and khakhras handy to munch on during your breaks rather than fried food.
* rather than caffeinated and sticky potables, have water for hydration as caffeine may disrupt the sleep cycle.
* Include a generous portion of vegetables in the form of salads and fruits, whole grains in the form of jowar chapatis and brown rice, wheat chuck, and protein-packed food like paneer, soy nuggets, and green lush vegetables.
* Stay down from fat-laden and fibre-deficient foods like pizzas, burgers, pav bhaji, white chuck, idlis, dosas, sweets, etc.
* According to Ayurveda, waking up at night increases blankness in the body. thus, have a tablespoon of ghee when you leave for work, it’ll balance any blankness in the body.
