Shift work impairs thinking

Irregular working hours obviously reduce memory

05/11/2014

Does shift work have an adverse effect on the mind? This could well be the case, according to a recent study by the CNRS research institute in Toulouse, France. Thus, for people who work shifts for many years or work at night, the performance of memory would decrease faster than working people with regular working hours.

Shift work and night work pose health risks
Changing working hours through shift work and night work are not only exhausting, but also pose health risks for many people. Whether sleep problems, hypertension, a digestive disorder, cardiovascular disease or certain cancers - the list of possible consequences of a life against the so-called „inner clock“ is long and straight Women often suffer greatly from the irregularity. However, according to a recent study by the research institute CNRS in Toulouse, this not only affects physical health, but apparently also affects memory and thinking.

Research institute CNRS examines 3232 people in long-term study
As study leader Jean-Claude Marquié reports in the US journal Occupational and Environmental Medicine, the survey involved a total of 3232 working and retired people from various industries who were between the ages of 32 and 62 at the beginning of the project. About half of the subjects worked in shifts. In order to examine the effects of this working time model, participants were subjected to various tests at three time points (1996, 2001 and 2006), which tested general cognitive abilities, responsiveness and long and short-term memory.

Brain only recovers after five years at the earliest
The result: People who worked for several years in shifts or at night showed a noticeably faster decline in cognitive abilities than working people with a regular working rhythm, according to Jean-Claude Marquié. This applies in particular to those workers who had worked in shifts for more than ten years because: „this corresponds to an additional age-related loss of cognitive abilities of 6.5 years in the respective cohort“ The „damage“ However, even after the end of the irregular work, they could not easily turn back, explains Marquié. Instead, it would take at least five years for the brain to recover from the extra burden.

The health of shiftworkers should be given greater prominence
However, according to the researchers, the results must now be verified by further investigations, the scientists write. Nevertheless, according to Marquié, the health of shiftworkers should in general have a special status, for example by making medical care and working time arrangements more employee-friendly. „Shift work has a chronic impact on cognition, potentially having important safety implications - not only for the individual but also for society“, according to the researchers in "Occupational and Environmental Medicine". (No)