Long hours linked to nurse obesity
September 1, 2012 3 minutes read
Long hours linked to nurse obesity
Lack of sleep affects health habits
Nurses who work long hours are more likely to be obese, as stress and sleep deprivation affect their health habits, according to researchers at the University of Maryland.
“Long work hours and shift work adversely affect quantity and quality of sleep, which often interferes with adherence to healthy behavior and increases obesity,” Kihye Han, PhD, RN, post-doctoral fellow in the University of Maryland School of Nursing in Baltimore, told HEH.
This bolsters the link between long work hours, inadequate sleep, and obesity that has been found in other studies, as well, notes Claire Caruso, PhD, RN, research health scientist at the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH). Caruso, who specializes in work schedules and work-related sleep loss, was not involved in this study.
“Substantial scientific evidence supports [the finding] that short sleep duration and poorer quality sleep is linked to increased body-mass index,” says Caruso.
Han analyzed the responses of about 2,100 nurses in the Nurses’ Worklife and Health Study, a longitudinal study of the impact of nurses’ work schedules led by University of Maryland professor Alison Trinkoff.1
Long work hours were defined not just as 13 or more hours in a shift, but the average number of hours worked per day, the number of weekends worked per month, shift rotation, working with less than 10 hours off between shifts, and working on scheduled days off or vacation days. “We think that various aspects of nurses’ work schedule should be considered simultaneously,” Han said.
Nurses with long work hours were more likely to report poor sleep than nurses with favorable work schedules, the study found.
Rest breaks, napping
Twelve-hour shifts are common in hospitals, but employers can take steps to reduce the impact, say Han and Caruso.
“Hospitals should offer strategies for adapting work schedules and educational interventions about sleep,” says Han. “A favorable organizational climate that supports napping in the workplace can help to prevent work-related sleep deprivation, reduce fatigue, and increase energy for healthy lifestyle behaviors.”
Employees need adequate time off between shifts and frequent rest breaks, says Caruso. “Frequent rest breaks and meal breaks during work shifts would allow workers to spread their daily calorie intake across the day and eat at regular times during the day,” she says. “Rest breaks also give workers the opportunity to exercise or take a short nap, which are both strategies to reduce risks from long work hours.” (For more NIOSH recommendations see related article, this page.)
While the Maryland study found an association between obesity and poor sleep, it didn’t address causality. Han says she hopes to continue researching the relationship between work schedules, health habits and obesity among nurses.
About 55% of nurses in the survey reported being overweight or obese, which is slightly lower than the national average of 65%. The lower number could be the result of under-reporting or could be related to the higher education level of nurses, says Han.
Other factors related to obesity among nurses include:
• Age. Older nurses were more likely to be obese.
• Work activity. Nurses whose jobs required less physical exertion were more likely to be obese.
• Health habits. Having better health behaviors, such as exercise and adequate sleep, decreased the risk of obesity even among nurses with long work hours.
Reference
1. Han K, Trinkoff A, Storr C, et al. Job stress and work schedules in relation to nurse obesity. Jrl Nurs Admin 2012; 41:488-495.
Nurses who work long hours are more likely to be obese, as stress and sleep deprivation affect their health habits, according to researchers at the University of Maryland.You have reached your article limit for the month. Subscribe now to access this article plus other member-only content.
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