![]() Specifically, the Period and Cryptochrome genes, which code for proteins regulate our sleep and wake cycles throughout the day. Our natural circadian rhythm is dictated by genetics. (What’s the swing shift? Click here to find out more.) Circadian disruption occurs when the body’s natural circadian rhythm is thrown into disarray by a night shift or swing shift schedule. Circadian DisruptionĬircadian disruption is considered the leading cause of fatigue and sleepiness among night shift workers. We think you may be surprised to learn how interconnected these causes really are. ![]() Some are more obvious than others, so we wanted to start off this article with a brief overview of why you feel so dang tired after working nights. Night shifts can take a toll on your energy levels for a number of different reasons. If you are interested in checking out the best natural sleep aid pills, you can find them on Amazon by clicking here. We wanted to jump on the bandwagon and ensure that our night shift community is also informed about fatigue and empowered with some helpful fatigue management strategies. These include taking your breaks, adhering to mandatory rest periods between shifts, timed napping, using caffeine wisely and healthy eating.Įmployers, workers, unions, and government agencies are all waking up to the cost of extreme fatigue, making “fatigue management” a bit of a buzzphrase these days. But ignoring the signs and symptoms of extreme fatigue can interfere with health and happiness, by increasing the risks associated with exhaustion, including human error, disease, and mental illness.įatigue may be inevitable when working night shifts, but it can be mitigated by implementing fatigue management strategies both on-the-job and at home. Please read our disclosure and privacy statement for more info.įatigue is such a common part of working night shifts that many of us are guilty of trying to just push through it. This article was first published on Australia’s Science Channel, the original news platform of The Royal Institution of Australia.Disclosure: This page may contain affiliate links, meaning we receive a commission if you decide to make a purchase through our links, but this is at no additional cost to you. She says the next move is to test the new finding on more people. Participants taking a ‘caffeine-nap’ showed marked improvements in both performance and alertness, indicating the potential of a ‘caffeine-nap’ to counteract sleep grogginess.Ĭentofanti says this shows a promising fatigue countermeasure for shift workers. The small pilot study tested the impact of 200 mg of caffeine (equivalent to 1-2 regular cups of coffee) consumed by participants just before a 3.30am 30-minute nap, comparing results with a group that took a placebo. “A ‘caffeine-nap’ (or ‘caff-nap’) could be a viable alternative – by drinking a coffee before taking a nap, shiftworkers can gain the benefits of a 20-30-minute nap then the perk of the caffeine when they wake. And, if you use it to perk you up after a nap, it can take a good 20-30 minutes to kick in, so there’s a significant time delay before you feel the desired effect. But again, if you have too much coffee it can harm your overall sleep and health. “Caffeine is also used by many people to stay awake and alert. The benefit of the caff-nap, or espresso nap ![]() But the downside is that they can experience ‘sleep inertia’ – that grogginess you have just after you wake up – and this can impair their performance and mood for up to an hour after their nap. “Many workers nap during a night shift because they get so tired. “As a result, they commonly use a range of strategies to try to boost their alertness while on the nightshift, and these can include taking power naps and drinking coffee – yet it’s important to understand that there are disadvantages for both. ![]() “Shift workers are often chronically sleep-deprived because they have disrupted and irregular sleep patterns,” Centofanti says. In Australia, more than 1.4 million people are employed in shift work, with more than 200,000 regularly working night or evening shifts.ĭr Stephanie Centofanti, who led the research at UniSA’s Sleep and Chronobiology Laboratory, says the finding could help counteract the kind of sleep inertia that is experienced by many shiftworkers. A simple coffee and a quick catnap could be the cure for staying alert on the nightshift as new research from the University of South Australia shows that this unlikely combination can improve attention and reduce sleep inertia. ![]()
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