Switch to Shift Work Leads to Sleep Struggles

Try going to sleep when the sun is rising and staying asleep through the brightest hours of the day. The odd sleep schedules that come with shift work is never easy. It goes against everything we learned at an early age. Turning your sleep schedule topsy-turvy is a shock to the system that can lead to insomnia and chronic fatigue.

Switching from shift work to regular daytime hours has the opposite effect, a new study reports. Swedish researchers examined the transition hardships associated with shift work in an article published in the July issue of Chronobiology International.

The study involved more than 3,600 participants who answered questionnaires about work hours, sleep and work environment at the start and end of a five year period.

Results show the participants had the most sleeping problems upon entering shift work. Many reported falling asleep on the job and having difficulty getting to sleep after work.

The risk of work fatigue and insomnia significantly diminished after the subjects returned to daylight work hours.

The findings were adjusted for various factors including work demands, physical workload and familial status.

Some shift work schedules are more difficult than others a previous study suggests. Jobs with start times between 8 p.m. and 12 a.m. tend to limit sleep and harm performance at work.

Caffeine may help offset fatigue and limit mistakes at work. Make sure to limit consumption to the first couple hours of work so you don’t have problems getting to sleep later.

The Perks and Perils of Split Sleep Schedules for Shift Workers

One of the most difficult aspects of shift work is figuring out when to sleep. You may get right to sleep after work but wake up earlier than intended, alert and unable to return to sleep. It may feel fine in the afternoon, but by the time the next shift starts exhaustion sets in.

Some shift workers adapt by splitting their sleep into two shorter periods each day. It works like this: sleep 4 to 5 hours in the morning, wake up in the early afternoon, and then take a long nap 2 to 3 hours before work.

Those with split sleep schedules say it allows for more flexibility to participate in daytime and early evening activities including parenting, socializing and running errands.

A limited body of research topic suggests a split sleep schedule is no different than sleeping exclusively during the daytime. Alertness levels are about the same in both conditions. It’s up to shift workers to decide what strategy is the best fit to get the maximum amount of sleep.

A 1998 study used computer modeling to test different sleep approaches for shift workers, including split sleep schedules. Results show a long late nap may increase alertness and minimize risk of injury or mistakes when the nap is taken around 1 a.m. The unfortunate reality is most overnight shift workers don’t have that luxury.

The authors determined the next best time for a nap is leading up to the start of work. This may help but it’s likely you will find yourself struggling to stay awake for most of your shift, especially between 2 a.m. and 6 a.m.

The study included a model for sleeping exclusively during the daytime. The results were nearly identical; sleeping a full 7.5 consecutive hours in the daytime leads to the same overnight alertness levels, however reduced, as napping before work.

A NASA funded experiment by researchers at the University of Pennsylvania Medical School came up with the same conclusion. The study looked at whether astronauts and mission control personnel could perform sufficiently under nontraditional sleep schedules, including split sleep.

Researchers monitored 90 subjects in a controlled laboratory with no external time cues for 14 consecutive days. Participants were assigned to one of 18 strict sleep conditions that included a mix of split sleep schedules and full daytime sleep schedules. The control group slept at night for about eight hours. The participants were given a series of alertness tests every two hours they were awake.

There was no measurable difference between split sleep schedules and daytime sleep, as long as the total sleep length was sufficient. The authors concluded split schedules have no negative impact and may allow more lifestyle flexibility for civilian shift workers.

Both approaches have their downsides. Staying asleep through the afternoon may be a challenge, especially during the summertime. Taking a late nap may make it difficult to fall asleep after work. Insomnia is a common complaint for all types of shift workers.

There are several other things you can do to make the shift work experience more tolerable. When used properly caffeine can be a boon for shift workers. A recent study found drinking coffee at the beginning of the shift can cut down on workplace mistakes.

Bright light therapy can also help increase alertness. The Sleep Education blog recommends using a light box for 15 minute increments at your workstation during the first half of your shift. Be careful not use a light box towards the end of your shift. Exposure to bright light close to bedtime may make it difficult to sleep.

Some shift workers describe feeling a surge of energy towards the end of shifts, especially after dawn. It’s important to avoid sunlight before trying to sleep. We suggest wearing dark sunglasses on the commute home from work. Also try to make your bedroom as dark as possible, by using blackout curtains.

High temperatures and daytime noise are two other common environmental sleep disruptions for shift workers. The Sleep Education blog suggests running the air conditioning along with a loud fan or noise machine.

Slightly adjusting your sleep schedule on days off may also help your body recover from shift work related sleep deprivation.

Shift Work May Cause Swell in Sleep Apnea Symptoms

A new study provides further health concerns for the estimated 20 million Americans who sleep during the daytime because of their work schedule. The symptoms of untreated obstructive sleep apnea may be worse for shift workers, a new study reports.

The study compared a group of 31 shift workers to ten daytime workers. Members in both groups were previously diagnosed with sleep apnea and had similar ages, weights and sleep lengths.

Daytime and nighttime polysomnograph results show that the shift workers had more frequent breathing pauses in breathing and higher oxygen desaturation levels. Both measures show that shift workers had more severe symptoms of sleep apnea.

The authors of the study caution that patients with untreated sleep apnea should avoid nighttime work. The Sleep Education Blog urges workers with sleep apnea to take that warning one step further and never let sleep apnea go untreated. Sleep apnea has been linked to heart disease, diabetes, dementia and other serious health problems.

Shift work also can also harm your health. Some workers may struggle with shift work disorder, which causes your internal body clock to go awry. Workers with shift work disorder may be severely tired but unable to sleep. Loss of sleep length and quality may affect job performance and put workers at risk for injury.

Read more about obstructive sleep apnea and shift work disorder.

Rotating Night Shift Work and Type 2 Diabetes in Women

A new study found that the longer women worked rotating night shifts, the greater their risk of developing type 2 diabetes. Researchers also found that extended years of rotating night shift work was associated with weight gain. The weight gain may have contributed to the increased risk of type 2 diabetes.

Women who worked rotating night shifts for three to nine years faced a 20 percent increased risk of type 2 diabetes. Women who worked nights for 10 to 19 years had a 40 percent rise in risk. And women who worked night shifts for over 20 years were 58 percent more at risk. Women who worked rotating night shifts also gained more weight and were more likely to become obese during the follow-up.

Rotating night shift work was defined as three or more night shifts plus day and evening hours each month. The Harvard School of Public Health tracked more than 175,000 U.S. nurses for this study. Findings were published Dec. 6 in the journal PLoS Medicine.

Researchers said the findings need to be confirmed in men and ethnic groups (96 percent of the nurses were white Caucasians). The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that 15 million Americans work full time on evening shifts, night shifts, rotating shifts or other irregular schedules.

Read more about shift work sleep disorder and women’s sleep needs. More stories about sleep and type 2 diabetes are available on the Sleep Education Blog.

Photo by DIAC Images

Planes Land in D.C. Airport While Traffic Controller Sleeps

Numerous attempts to contact air traffic control went unanswered during the final approach to Washington D.C.’s Ronald Reagan National Airport early Wednesday. Two planes had to rely on directions from a regional facility located about 40 miles away, while the nearby control tower remained mysteriously silent.

Only one person was scheduled for duty at the time and that air traffic controller was asleep, sources tell the Associated Press.

Authorities insist the risk Wednesday was minimal because pilots are trained to announce an emergency landing over a special broadcast channel in the event that no air traffic controllers are present. The pilots would not be able to see if there was equipment on the runway that could be a landing hazard.



Air traffic controllers like many professionals in the airline industry face grueling and irregular work schedules that puts them at risk. Shift work disorder is especially prevalent. People with shift work disorder may fight their own circadian rhythms on a daily basis. The body may signal its time to sleep mid-shift and by the time shift workers get home circadian rhythms can make it difficult to fall asleep and stay asleep.

The airline industry has had its share of problems possibly related to shift work disorder and other sleep problems. An NTSB investigation named impairment from fatigue and pilot inexperience as causes of the deadly crash of Colgan Air Flight 3407 in February 2009. One pilot napped in the airport while the other took a cross-country red-eye prior to the flight.

Recent investigations found similar working conditions to be common in the industry. Pilots are required a rest period of only eight hours between shifts. The rest period can occur at any time, day or night, without considering whether the pilot has the ability to fall asleep.

Low wages among pilots who work for smaller carriers also pose a safety problem. Pilots may try to save money by sleeping at hostel-like “crash-pads” instead of hotels. With up to a dozen airline employees sleeping in bunks in the same room, “crash-pads” aren’t a good place to sleep.

Last fall, the Federal Aviation Authority proposed scheduling regulations intended to address pilot fatigue. Those changes were met with strong opposition.

It appears that regulators have turned their attention to air traffic controllers. Reagan airport has agreed to increase its overnight staffing, after a direct request from Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood.

It will remain to be seen if the sleeping air traffic controller will lead to major industry changes.

Women, Shift Work and Breast Cancer

BBC News reports that some women in Denmark who developed breast cancer after years of working night shifts are receiving compensation from the government.

Is there a clear link between shift work and breast cancer?

A 2008 review found only limited evidence. Yet there was enough data to convince the International Agency for Research on Cancer.

The IARC convened a working group in 2007. It was composed of 24 scientists from 10 countries. The experts reviewed all of the research.

They concluded that working night shifts is “probably carcinogenic to humans.” This means that shift work may be a factor “that can increase the risk of human cancer.”

The report was the basis for the Danish government’s compensation program. So far almost 40 women have received payment through the program.

How might night shifts promote breast cancer?

The exact mechanism is unclear. But it may be related to how shift work disrupts the “circadian rhythms” that are controlled by the body clock in your brain. This internal timing system regulates the daily cycle of various body functions.

It controls your body temperature and hormone levels. It also regulates your alertness.

One way the body promotes sleepiness is by producing more melatonin at night. This acts as a “sleep signal” for your body.

But light exposure during night shifts suppresses melatonin production and disrupts your sleep/wake cycle. These disruptions may promote the growth of cancerous tumors.

Get sleep tips for shift workers from the AASM.

Sleeping on the Job Proves Costly

ABC News reports that a nuclear power plant was fined $65,000 because security workers were caught sleeping on the job.

Video images of sleeping guards were recorded by a fellow guard at different times of day. A federal investigator also discovered a guard sleeping at his post.

The incidents occurred at the Peach Bottom Nuclear Plant just outside of Philadelphia. The guards are responsible for protecting the plant from a terrorist attack.

Falling asleep on the job is a clear sign of severe sleep deprivation. This is common when security guards work more than one job.

Excessive daytime sleepiness can be a sign of another sleep disorder. These include obstructive sleep apnea, restless legs syndrome and narcolepsy.

Sleepiness on the job also is a common sign of shift work disorder. The problem can be severe for people who work rotating shifts or night shifts. This forces them to be alert at a time when the body is normally asleep.

Then they have to try to sleep during the day. Daytime distractions can make this difficult. In a recent study of 163 nurses, more than 70 percent of the nurses report that they are unable to get enough sleep.

A recent study in the journal Sleep reports that night-shift workers can benefit from a realistic but strict sleep schedule. It helps them remain alert during the night shift and allows them to stay awake during the day on days off.

Subjects slept in dark bedrooms at scheduled times: 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. after the first two night shifts. From 8:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. after the third night shift. From 3 a.m. to 12 p.m. on the two weekend days off. And again from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. after the final four night shifts.

They also were exposed to five, 15-minute sessions of bright light therapy each night shift. Within two hours after waking up, they went outside for at least 15 minutes of natural light exposure. But they wore dark sunglasses whenever they were outside.

The schedule enabled them to perform well at work and sleep well at home. Contact an AASM-accredited sleep center if you are sleeping on the job or struggling with a shift-work schedule.

Fatigue Formula May Prevent Future Air Traffic Tragedy

Shortly after 6 a.m. on August 27, 2006, 49 people were killed when a Delta Connection flight skidded off the end of a Fayette County, Kentucky runway on takeoff. The commuter plane was on the wrong runway – one too short for the plane.

Only one man was on watch in the control room when it happened. He failed to notice the plane until it was too late. He was wrapping up an overnight shift after logging only two or three hours of sleep the prior afternoon. He had 10 hours between shifts, but couldn’t sleep because of his sleep cycle. Prior to the deadly crash, the controller had worked two evening shifts, two daytime shifts and a full overnight shift.

A group of sleep researchers at Washington State University say the disaster could have been easily prevented. The researchers estimate the controller was only operating at 71 percent effectiveness because he was fatigued and fighting his circadian rhythms.

A more flexible, sleep-friendly schedule would have helped the controller work at maximum efficiency. AASM member Gregory Belenky suggests airports switch from rule-based staffing schedules to more flexible schedules. The shifts would be based on how much sleep people can actually attain, rather than hours set aside for sleep.

The concept is one step further than regulation the FAA proposed last year after the fatal 2009 commuter plane crash near Buffalo. Under the proposal, airlines would have to take into consideration the time of day, time zone and circadian rhythms when scheduling shifts. Pilots unions strongly opposed the changes, claiming the policy would have a negative impact on safety.
The blame in the 2006 crash can’t be completely pinned on the lone controller. The pilot and crew were also fatigued from shift work.

Once again, fatigue proves to be of serious concern to the public health. Shift work is necessary in our non-stop 24 hour society, but it doesn’t have to be harmful for workers and the public at-large. Employee wellness efforts and shift work awareness can go a long way.

A Sleep Schedule that Works for the Night Shift

A series of studies have found that a “compromise” sleep schedule is effective for people who work night shifts. The results of the latest study were published in the Nov. 1 issue of the journal Sleep.

The sleep schedule improves alertness during the night shift and daytime sleep after the shift. But it also provides a “compromise” that helps night-shift workers on days off.

It enables them to get the sleep they need; but it also gives them more free time during the day.

“We think that most real shift workers want to be awake on their days off,” lead author Mark Smith, PhD, previously told the AASM.

Here’s the “compromise” sleep schedule for night-shift workers:

• Sleep from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. after regular night shifts.


• Sleep from 8:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. after the last night shift before a weekend off.


• Sleep from 3 a.m. to noon on days off.

The studies also used three light-related strategies to increase the effectiveness of this schedule. Light is an important timing cue that helps your body regulate sleep and alertness.

First, workers received bright light therapy during simulated 11 p.m. to 7 a.m. night shifts. Light boxes were used during four, 15-minute sessions.

The first session began at 12:45 a.m. These sessions were repeated hourly, with the final session ending at 4 a.m.

Second, workers had to go outside within the first two hours after waking up. They needed to get at least 15 minutes of exposure to daylight.

Third, the workers wore dark sunglasses at all times when outside during the day. This was most important when traveling home after a night shift.

The current study found that workers had improved mood, fatigue and performance during night shifts when following the compromise sleep schedule. These levels were similar to daytime measurements obtained during “9 to 5” work days.

The authors caution that the participants were not real shift workers; they were young volunteers. The “night shifts” were conducted in a laboratory. So the compromise sleep schedule still needs to be tested in real night-shift workers.

Learn about shift work sleep disorder on SleepEducation.com.

Image by GaijinSeb

Sleep problems often persist after shift work, not permanent

There’s some hope for folks ready to give up the struggle with the overnight shift: insomnia and other sleep problems often associated with those difficult hours may be difficult to shake when it’s over, but it’s not permanent.

Research also shows more years of shift work does not lead to worse sleep problems.

These findings were part of a 10 year longitudinal study in the April issue of Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine. Researchers followed workers in their 30s, 40s, 50s, and 60s over various lengths of time.

Former shift workers had more sleep-related problems than those still on the graveyard shift or people who worked normal hours. Researchers reason this group is “self-selected,” meaning they were predisposed to have sleep disorders, and their difficulties persisted after they left their jobs.

Those who were still in early in their professional lives had the most problems. They were most likely to leave their jobs.

Shift workers also had more problems sleeping than daytime workers, often waking up too early.

For more on the night shift, go here to find a sleep schedule that works, or go to Sleepeducation.com to learn everything you need to know.

Study: Caffeine beneficial for shift workers

If you work overnights, drinking a cup of coffee early in your shift might not be a bad idea, new research suggests.

A review of several studies published in the May issue of the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews found caffeine appears to help cut down mistakes on the job for shift or nighttime workers.

Researchers analyzed the findings of 13 studies examining the effects of caffeine on workers

Most of the studies took place at simulated workplaces inside sleep laboratories. Subjects took caffeine in the form of coffee, energy drinks, pills and caffeinated foods.

Compared to placebos, caffeine was associated with better overall cognitive performance.

Shift workers who took caffeine made fewer errors than those who took naps.

The review was not able to pin down if caffeine could reduce the frequency of work injuries because of a noticeable gap in previous research.

The authors are cautiously supportive of using caffeine to get through shift work.

Past studies have shown caffeine can negatively impact daytime sleep. However AASM task force found your sleep is unlikely to be disrupted if you consume caffeine more than 8 hours before bedtime.

Combining caffeine at the start of an overnight shift with an evening nap may be your best option. A 2006 study found that can improve job performance and reduce sleepiness.

Image Courtesy Ladik

Caffeine & the Night Shift

A recent study examined the effect that consuming caffeine at night may have on daytime sleep.

The sleep of participants was monitored during a night in a sleep lab. Then they stayed awake in the lab for 25 hours. While awake they were given caffeine capsules. Then their sleep was monitored again as they slept during the day.

Results show that daytime sleep was worse after taking caffeine. Measures such as sleep efficiency and sleep duration were lower.

So does this mean that people who work the night shift should avoid caffeine? Not necessarily.

The participants were given caffeine late during the night. They took a 100-mg dose three hours before attempting to sleep during the day; they were given another 100-mg dose only one hour before daytime sleep.

The stimulating effect of caffeine can last for hours. So it’s no surprise that their sleep was affected.

But an AASM task force report concluded that your sleep is unlikely to be disrupted if you take caffeine at least eight hours earlier. And other studies show that caffeine helps improve the performance and alertness of night-shift workers.

A study in the journal Sleep in 2006 found that combining caffeine with an evening nap provided the greatest benefit. Before a simulated night shift, participants were given a nap opportunity at 7:30 p.m. Their average nap duration ranged from 73 to 99 minutes.

At about 10:30 p.m. they were given 4 mg/kg of caffeine. The authors reported that this dose has been shown to be effective without interfering with daytime sleep.

A 4 mg/kg dose means that you take 4 mg of caffeine for each kg of body weight. So the dose would be about 272 mg if you weigh 150 pounds, 318 mg if you weigh 175 pounds, and 363 mg if you weigh 200 pounds.

A second part of the study involved actual night-shift workers who took 300 mg of caffeine at the start of each night shift. It also found that caffeine and napping improved performance and reduced sleepiness.

On Tuesday the Sleep Education Blog reported that another option for night-shift workers is to follow a “compromise” sleep schedule.

Read about sleep & caffeine on SleepEducation.com to find out how much caffeine is in your coffee, soda or tea. Learn about shift work sleep disorder.

A Melatonin Patch May Help Shift Workers Sleep During the Day

A nicotine patch is commonly used by people who want to quit smoking. A small dose of nicotine enters the blood by being absorbed through the skin.

Can this method of “transdermal delivery” be used for a sleep aid such as melatonin? A new report provides positive results from a small study.

The study involved eight people. They were given an eight-hour opportunity to sleep during the daytime. This simulated the sleep schedule of someone who performs shift work.

Some participants were given a patch with 2.1 mg of melatonin. These participants were able to sleep better during the day; their sleep was similar to natural nighttime sleep.

Melatonin is a natural hormone that is produced by the brain’s pineal gland. It is considered a “darkness signal” for your body and seems to play an important role in sleep.

Melatonin is widely available in the U.S. as a nutritional supplement. When taken at the proper time, it can produce a shift in the timing of your sleep period. Melatonin can be helpful in the treatment of shift work disorder, jet lag disorder and delayed sleep phase disorder.

But melatonin does have limitations. One is the short length of its effectiveness.

“Melatonin taken orally often wears off quickly, as it is rapidly removed from the body,” study co-author Daniel Aeschbach, PhD, said in a prepared statement.

Oral melatonin supplements may help you fall asleep during the day; but it may be difficult for you to get a full seven to eight hours of sleep.

The study found that the patch elevated melatonin levels gradually; these levels remained elevated for an extended duration.

“The peak concentration occurred in the early evening, during the latter part of the bed rest,” said Aeschbach. “We know – and shift workers know - that this is a time during which it is particularly difficult to remain asleep.”

Find sleep tips for shift workers on SleepEducation.com. Get help for a sleep problem at an AASM-accredited sleep center near you.

Second Air Traffic Controller Sleeps through Midnight Shift

For the second time in two months, an air traffic controller was caught sleeping on the job. A Federal Aviation Administration report says the unnamed controller didn’t accidently doze off - he intentionally slept for five hours.

The incident happened at McGee Tyson Airport in Knoxville, Tenn. on February 19 – more than a month before a supervisor working alone at Washington’s Reagan National Airport unintentionally fell asleep for nearly a half-hour.

Unlike the incident a month ago, the Knoxville controller is being fired by the government for “unprofessional and inappropriate behavior.”

It’s easy to blame an irresponsible employee, but as the Sleep Education Blog reported recently, the problem runs much deeper.

Air traffic controllers face notoriously difficult sleep schedules. One common schedule for air traffic controllers known as the “rattler” involves returning to work a midnight shift only hours after working a daytime shift. The nickname “rattler” comes from the damage the shift does to sleep patterns.

The problem of fatigued air traffic controllers are hardly a new one. In 2007, the National Transportation Safety Board released a report that shed light on how sleep deprivation affects job performance. The report revealed that air traffic controllers get an average of only 2.3 hours of sleep before a midnight shift. Rapidly rotating shifts and short rest periods between shifts lead workers to be fatigued before a shift even begins.

To make things worse, most midnight-shift air traffic controllers work alone. The National Air Traffic Controllers Association emphasizes staffing problems as the cause for both cases, and is demanding there be extra controllers during overnight shifts as safety measure.

The FAA is hesitant to hire, because air traffic controllers generally earn high pay and have pricey benefits. The U.S. Labor Department Bureau of Statistics reports that the average salary of air traffic controllers was $109,218 in March 2009. Transportation officials may have a difficult time justifying that kind of cost in the current political and budgetary climate on Capitol Hill.

It’s possible that air traffic controllers will see some type of regulation that affects their schedules as a reaction to both incidents. In the meantime, the AASM has provided air traffic controllers and shift workers with a list of tips that can help with the midnight shift.

12-hour shifts take strong toll on nurses, raise mistake risk

Continuing on the theme this morning the negative effects irregular work schedules can have on employees, a new study seemingly condemns a common practice in the medical industry. The results could give hospitals incentive to change scheduling strategies to avoid potentially life-threatening mistakes.

The study found nurses who work 12-hour shifts rarely get restful sleep, and may struggle to keep an attentive eye on patients.

Half of nurses who took vigilance tests tended to have multiple lapses in alertness. The lapses were moderate for 39 percent and frequent for seven percent of nurses who worked lengthy shifts. Factors included sleep prior to shift, caffeine use and fatigue levels.

The amount of sleep nurses gets between 12-hour shifts is alarming. The average sleep time is only 5.5 hours. It gets worse for night-shift nurses, who slept a fragmented 5.2 hours a day.

“With long commutes and family responsibilities, nurses have very little opportunity to rest between shifts,” said Jeanne Geiger-Brown, PhD, principal investigator of the study.

Signs indicate the nurses may suffer from shift work disorder, a form of insomnia caused by work hours that are scheduled during the natural human sleep period.

The study involved 80 registered nurses who worked three consecutive 12-hour shifts. Lapses and median reaction times were measured with the five-minute Palm Psychomotor Vigilance Test.

The abstract associated with this research will be available for viewing Tuesday at SLEEP 2010, the 24th annual meeting of the Associated Professional Sleep Societies, LLC.

Image by Christiana Care

Workplace Disability & The Value of Sleep

The business cost of insomnia goes beyond loss of employee productivity. Workers with regular sleep disturbances go on disability more often and take longer to return to work.

A study published in the October, 2010 issue of the journal SLEEP investigated how insomnia impacts workplace health. Researchers found sleep disturbances predicted later workplace disability for mental disorders, physical illnesses and musculoskeletal disorders.

The study followed more than 56,000 active public employees in Finland for more than three years. Each of the government and public hospital employees was surveyed about sleep disturbances and preexisting health conditions at the start of the study. The authors used national records to identify which employees went on disability during the follow-up after three years.

Workers who had existing medical conditions, used prescribed pain killers or regularly performed manual labor were most likely to report severe sleep disturbance which occurred more 5-7 days per week.

Over the course of the study, 7 percent of the employees went on disability. About 1 in 3 never returned to work. Statistical analysis shows people who reported sleep disturbances had a higher likelihood of going on work disability and not returning to work. The results were adjusted for complicating factors such as shift work, depression and preexisting health problems.

Worker disability is only one of the business costs of sleep disturbances. Insomnia can also make you worse at your job.

Sometimes your job may be the source of the sleep problems. In 2009 the Sleep Education Blog reported on studies that tied high stress work and low social support at the workplace to long-term insomnia.

Dr. Oz Wrong on Melatonin Supplements

Dr. Oz is correct when he says melatonin is the most misused sleep aid in America, unfortunately he’s not helping the issue. In his latest sleep issue segment the television host called the hormone supplement “pretty effective” in regulating sleep. In actuality, there are mixed findings that melatonin supplements actually work.

Research shows up to 1 mg of melatonin may help certain people with insomnia, but the effects are relatively mild. It may help people fall asleep about seven minutes faster than normal. Melatonin wears off quickly, so people with insomnia may have difficult time staying asleep.

An AASM review found the supplement may be useful for treating jet lag, shift work or delayed sleep phase. Melatonin may help correct disrupted circadian rhythms and sleep timing issues.

Try taking melatonin a few days before and after travelling across several time zones or before shift work. There are no serious risks related to melatonin use, but the long term effects are still unknown.

Doctor Oz’s final piece of advice is a better solution for insomnia – make sure to go to sleep and wake up at the same time every day. If sleeplessness persists try cognitive behavioral therapy. The AASM reports it is the most effective option for treating insomnia.

Circadian Signs Found in Hair Samples

You can find out a lot about a person’s health just by taking a hair sample. Employers and police use hair tests to detect traces of alcohol, cocaine, marijuana, meth and many more oft-abused substances. Your doctor can tell you if you have any vitamin, mineral or nutritional deficiencies from a few dozen strands. And now researchers are learning hair tests can show when we are supposed to sleep and whether our body clocks are off track.

Findings published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences suggest hair sample testing may help specialists in sleep medicine diagnose circadian rhythm disorders. Hair follicle cells from the head or chin hair contain clock gene expressions. In other words, the amount of the genetic material RNA in your hair shows whether you’re supposed to be alert. Your hair has the most RNA during peak hours.

The Japanese authors repeatedly took hair samples from volunteers as they continued their daily routines. Over the course of three weeks they adjusted their schedule by four hours. Hair samples show their peak activity was still about two hours off, meaning their body clocks weren’t adjusted to the new sleep schedule.

The effect was magnified for rotating shift workers. Their body clock differed from their sleep-wake schedule by an average of five hours.

Beard hair worked best for the tests: researchers needed only three strands to detect circadian rhythms. It took about five head hairs for people with thick hair and up to 20 for thin head hair.

The technique is still in its infancy but has potential for clinical use, the authors argue. Hair samples could potentially tell us our chronotype and diagnose circadian rhythm disorder, jet lag and shift work disorder.

Read more about chronotypes and shift work on the Sleep Education Blog.

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Research Catching Up to Jet Lag

Results from a new study in Current Biology may lead to more effective treatments for jet lag and shift work sleep disorder.

Both sleep disorders involve a disruption to your body’s circadian timing system. This system regulates the timing of when you sleep and wake.

The study shows that this disruption occurs in two separate groups of neurons in the brain. It also involves two different sleep stages.

Both groups of neurons are located in the “suprachiasmatic nucleus.” This part of the brain acts as a body clock. It regulates daily functions such as body temperature, hormone levels and sleepiness.

The study found that one set of neurons is closely linked with slow wave sleep. This is also called “deep sleep.” These neurons receive light information directly from the eyes. With these light and dark signals, your pattern of deep sleep can adjust to a new schedule in a couple of days.

Another set of neurons controls rapid eye movement – or REM – sleep. Most of your dreams occur during this stage. These neurons do not receive direct light information. As a result your pattern of REM sleep can be out of sync for a week or more when you cross time zones.

The researchers exposed lab rats to an artificial light-dark schedule. This simulated a trip from Paris to New York.

They also found that the time change disrupted the normal progression of sleep stages. There was an overlap of slow wave sleep and REM sleep right after the simulated jet lag. The rats also were more likely to enter REM sleep earlier than they should.

The study helps explain why it takes the body so long to adapt to a new time zone. After a long flight it typically takes about one day per time zone for your body clock to adjust to the local time.

Researcher Horacio de la Iglesia expects that the study will have a positive impact on treatments for jet lag and shift work.

"We can go back to the treatments that are believed to be effective and see where they might be acting in the circuitry of these neuron centers, then refine them to be more effective," he said in a University of Washington statement.

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Air Traffic Controller Crackdown Misguided, Potentially Ineffective

Safety concerns persist as federal regulators continue to discipline air traffic controllers for dozing off on the job. Since March, at least five air traffic controllers have been caught napping while monitoring overnight flights.

With all the recent media coverage, you might think this is a new national emergency - it’s not. Midnight-shift air traffic controllers have always had a grueling schedule and a hard to sustain lifestyle. The public is only now taking notice.

A Wall Street Journal blogger put it best in an article published Tuesday, “If you wanted to design a job conducive to involuntary napping, it would be hard to do much better than putting workers with ever-changing shift schedules in a dark room, with limited supervision, for hours at a stretch.”

The reality is that this problem has gone ignored and unreported for far too long. According to an AP report it once was an open secret in the FAA that overnight air traffic controllers would sometimes sleep on the job. Sometimes it was accidental, other times controllers arranged unsanctioned naps with another colleague briefly covering their job duties.

The FAA and National Air Traffic Controllers Association working group recommends letting controllers take naps for as long as two-and-a-half hours. The group also recommended that controllers be allowed to nap during paid breaks, based on sleep research from the NASA, the Air Force and others. Other nations such as Germany and Japan allow for air traffic controllers to take nap breaks.

Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood outright rejected those recommendations.

“On my watch, controllers will not be paid to take naps. We’re not going to allow that,“ LaHood said Sunday.

Instead, the Federal Aviation Administration is taking a disciplinary approach by enforcing longstanding FAA rules. Under the rules, controllers are not allowed to sleep on the job - even on breaks. Violating these rules could lead to dismissal.

Managers will be required to report to work slightly earlier or stay at work later to remind overnight controllers that they can’t fall asleep on the job. Most of the controllers will remain alone, unsupervised during the early morning hours.

A few changes announced by the FAA may make a small difference. The agency ordered that 27 airports add a second midnight-shift controller. The FAA is also requiring controllers take at least nine hours off between shifts, rather than the current eight hours.

The infamous “rattler” schedule –with a morning shift followed by a midnight shift - remains possible. With unsustainable floating shift schedules allowed and sanctioned naps still unacceptable the FAA is unlikely to notice much of an improvement in air traffic control towers across the U.S.

Photo by Nemo