Published on November 3, 2014 in the medical journal Occupational & Environmental Medicine, a new Franco-British scientific study confirms the dangers of work at odd hours.
Previous studies have already shown that night work increases the risk of diabetes, cancer and obesity. Now, it is also accused of accelerating cognitive decline.
Here, the researchers followed 3,232 employees from the south of France aged 32, 42, 52 and 62, for ten years. At the end of the study, it turned out that 1484 of them had exercised staggered hours, for at least 50 days a year. All production sectors were represented in the study.
Using neuropsychological tests, scientists evaluated their cognitive abilities (memory, reaction speed, attention, etc.) on three occasions: in 1996, in 2001 and then in 2006.
A cognitive decline of 6.5 years more than the others
The results showed that people who worked staggered hours had a faster cognitive decline than the others. People working staggered hours for more than 10 years were the most affected, with a cognitive decline of 6.5 years more on average than those who work “normal” hours.
If cognitive aging is an ineducable natural process, it would thus be greatly accelerated when working shifts.
The negative impact of shift work would persist for at least 5 years after the cessation of work, which proves a certain reversibility in the long term. According to Jean-Claude Marquié, researcher at the CNRS in Toulouse and main author of the study, this decline in cognitive functions is not negligible, however, even if it must be confirmed by other studies.
Personalized medical monitoring
For society as well as for the well-being of each individual, the researchers recommend taking better account of these effects on health, by setting up “personalized medical surveillance” and better organization of the work to “promote the most favorable times for sleep. »
It would be better, for example, to start at 6 a.m. rather than 4 a.m., advises the research team.
By disrupting the biological rhythm, the night work could lead to diabetes,obesitybut also cancer : in 2007, the International Agency for Research on Cancer classified it as a “probable carcinogen”.
