The night shift can be hazardous to your health, UBC study finds: Lack of sleep, higher workload increases likelihood of injuries
By Darah Hansen and Doug Ward
Vancouver Sun
November 3, 2010

… According to a new report by researchers at the University of B.C., Canadians who work night shifts are almost twice as likely to be injured on the job as those working regular day shifts. And women, more so than men, are at considerable risk of injury on the job, especially if they work rotating shifts.

"The hypothesis behind this is that working shift work increases sleepiness and reduces alertness which, in turn, can lead to injury," said Imelda Wong, a PhD candidate at UBC's School of Environmental Health and the study's lead author.

The researchers suggest the problem is exacerbated for women by family responsibilities, which can lead to greater difficulties adjusting to shift work and maintaining regular sleep schedules.

"On average they [women] work probably about nine hours more [than men] per week on child care and housework," Wong said. Men's primary duties in the home tend to be focused more on car maintenance and financial matters, "which are not quite as taxing on a daily basis," she added.

The study, published in the current edition of the Scandinavian Journal of Work, Environment and Health, examined data on more than 30,000 Canadians collected as part of Statistics Canada's Survey of Labour and Income Dynamics. …