| Title: | Night shift work is associated with an increased risk of asthma |
| Journal: | Thorax |
| Published: | 16 Nov 2020 |
| Pubmed: | https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33199525/ |
| DOI: | https://doi.org/10.1136/thoraxjnl-2020-215218 |
| URL: | https://thorax.bmj.com/content/thoraxjnl/76/1/53.full.pdf |
Publication 5464
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Abstract
INTRODUCTION: Shift work causes misalignment between internal circadian time and the external light/dark cycle and is associated with metabolic disorders and cancer. Approximately 20% of the working population in industrialised countries work permanent or rotating night shifts, exposing this large population to the risk of circadian misalignment-driven disease. Analysis of the impact of shift work on chronic inflammatory diseases is lacking. We investigated the association between shift work and asthma.</p>
METHODS: We describe the cross-sectional relationship between shift work and prevalent asthma in >280000 UK Biobank participants, making adjustments for major confounding factors (smoking history, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, physical activity, body mass index). We also investigated chronotype.</p>
RESULTS: Compared with day workers, 'permanent' night shift workers had a higher likelihood of moderate-severe asthma (OR 1.36 (95% CI 1.03 to 1.8)) and all asthma (OR 1.23 (95% CI 1.03 to 1.46)). Individuals doing any type of shift work had higher adjusted odds of wheeze/whistling in the chest. Shift workers who never or rarely worked on nights and people working permanent nights had a higher adjusted likelihood of having reduced lung function (FEV1 <80% predicted). We found an increase in the risk of moderate-severe asthma in morning chronotypes working irregular shifts, including nights (OR 1.55 (95% CI 1.06 to 2.27)).</p>
CONCLUSIONS: The public health implications of these findings are far-reaching due to the high prevalence and co-occurrence of both asthma and shift work. Future longitudinal follow-up studies are needed to determine if modifying shift work schedules to take into account chronotype might present a public health measure to reduce the risk of developing inflammatory diseases such as asthma.</p>
17 Keywords
- Adult
- Aged
- Asthma
- Circadian Rhythm
- Cross-Sectional Studies
- Female
- Humans
- Male
- Middle Aged
- Prevalence
- Risk Assessment
- Risk Factors
- Shift Work Schedule
- Sleep
- Surveys and Questionnaires
- Time Factors
- United Kingdom
14 Authors
- Robert J Maidstone
- James Turner
- Celine Vetter
- Hassan S Dashti
- Richa Saxena
- Frank A J L Scheer
- Steven A Shea
- Simon D Kyle
- Deborah A Lawlor
- Andrew S I Loudon
- John F Blaikley
- Martin K Rutter
- David W Ray
- Hannah Jane Durrington
Enabling scientific discoveries that improve human health