Do you think Night Shifts are harmful?

I think if someone is always doing night shifts then it could have an effect on their lives if they cant work out a routine, I know someone who only works nights but he has a routine and it doesnt really change his life, he does his shift, goes home and sleeps for a few hours, then does what most people do in the day, and then has a nap before he leaves for work. If you do nights and then spend all day sleeping then I think it can be bad for you, as you probably arent seeing much daylight, or speaking to many people so you may get a bit withdrawn. But I have worked a few nights before and I managed to get enough sleep during the day. I think you need to try getting more sleep, 5 hours isnt really enough, have you tried getting a bit of sleep before you go to work. Can you ask your bosses if there is a way you can work your shifts out to get into a routine, it is hard if you are doing nights one day and then days the next. Maybe if you have a proper shift pattern you may feel better. Or you can try to persuade them not to give you anymore night shifts.

hi stand yes I thinkour bodies just cannot adapt to that switch like that. I used to work as a nurses aide an we took turns working on the different shifts. I loved 7 to 3 shift but really liked the 3 to 11 as I work better later in the day and sleep better if I went to bed at12 and slept to 8 or 9am,but I found it harder to sleep days when I worked 11 to 7 am. it was pure hell tryhing to get enough sleep and when I got older I had to beg out of the night shift as I just could no longer sleep days.that shift might be alright for a twenty year old but older people just cannot get enough sleep.And yet there are some jobs like hospitals and police and firemen and paramedics have no choice as emergencies happen all the time and those types of emergenices are often happening late very late at night.

I worked night shifts a couple of times in my working career. I hate them !! People, especially corporations, do not see the importance of sleep. I wrote an article on it. Here is the link: http://factoidz.com/a-few-facts-about-sleep/ SLeep is very important. I can see why you say you don't feel well. I'd be looking for other work.

If you were working night shifts all the time I wouldn't really think that it would be something that was harmful for you if you did it for a short period of time. However, working the way that you've described really can't be that good for your body because you really aren't able to get used to working off shifts and are instead really doing nothing but messing up the natural rhythms of your body. This I think is very harmful to you.

Hello stand87! Yeah, I think working against the body clock you were used to before really affects your health, especially if you cannot rest properly after your shift, what with the warm weather and the noise outside. However, I think it is subtle though, meaning, it will not appear immediately, it will be gradual, if you are happy though with your current job and the only problem is the shift or working hours, then by all means, try to talk it out with your supervisor, or ask/request for another shift that suits you, cheers!

I sure think so. My mom works from seven pm to three pm and it affects her mood and her immune system I think. Staying awake at these times sorely affects the circadian rhythms and not sleeping during night hours is proven to have a negative affect on a person's health and immune system. It is more difficult to sleep during light hours which leads a person to be more fatigued and less productive. I understand not feeling great after a night shift, it is to be expected. I don't think I could ever take a night shift because I usually fall asleep by nine and I can't stay up too late even if I try my hardest. I have such awful times sleeping that if I messed up the schedule I have now I might never sleep normally again. It would also just be awful to have to work through the night and sleep during the day light hours.

Hi Stand, I don't really think night shifts are harmful once your body adjusts and you are able to get enough sleep. I work 2pm to 11:30 pm and I don't mind it at all. I am a night person anyway so it is easier for me than when I was working days. I think what is really unhealthy is what you describe....they switch your hours up from days to nights. By doing that, your body never gets the chance to adjust. At one point I was doing that and I felt tired and worn all the time. I would not quit this job without finding a replacement as jobs are so hard to come by right now. Still, I would be keeping my eyes out for something better. Good luck...hope things change for you real soon, Stand.

I work nights for FedEx and i never get enough sleep. Kids outside going to school . kids after school. neighbors being loud with music . phone is ringing all day . I found some music to put on soft music to drown out the sounds and also eat well . No high fat food no caffeine drinks and you will get sleep more.

I worked the night shift for years and had a couple of doctors tell me it wasn't good for me. Most humans are biologically set to sleep at night. Some are "night owls" and for those people it doesn't do them any harm but for most it will upset your inner clock and is not healthy. I had to work that shift, you do what you have to do, but it's not good for most.

Yes ,Night shift is really harmful to health .Now you may get more money to work in night shift but one day you will spend all your earnings for your health.So it is better to quit to night shift .A normal man should always sleep in the night .Sleeping is not important ,Sleeping in the night is very important. If your working in night shift then your going against the nature .So I think whether if we get less salary it is better to work in the day .

I do believe working the night shift has the potential to be harmful, especially if one is not careful about getting the required amount of sleep. If you are able to sleep during the day, then it shouldn't cause any problems. I believe many people want or can't sleep during the daytime and want to be with friends and family, so they might miss out on needed sleep. A friend of mine fell asleep at the wheel once while driving home from working the night shift and was in a car accident. Lucky for him, he came through it all okay.

Yes it is harmful and it will have it toll on your body. I've tried working over time sometimes working more than 24 hours and sleep on the next day. Even if I was able to sleep for more than 12 hours I still don't feel well rested. There is nothing compared to sleeping at night.

To me night shifts are harmful especially if you are not used to it. I tried doing night shifts before, and after a week I started getting nauseated and throwing-up. Also my sleep pattern was disrupted and I don't feel well sleeping in the morning. When I was doing night shift, I tend to bring a lot of food so I can eat and keep me awake so I gained a lot of weight. Usually at 2 am or 3am I get so sleepy I tend to slap my face, pinched myself or splash ice water on my face just to keep me awake. Then I started feeling dizzy and I said to myself I need another job. I don't know about you but I am not going to last working on night shift. The reason I can't work on night shift is I will loose my job because they will find me sleeping somewhere and I will get sick. I am so sorry that you said you haven't had a choice but anyway maybe you can just try it right now and change shifts later on. But for those people who love night shifts, this shift has a lot of advantages. Night shift pays more that day shift. It is also more quiet and you can do a lot more. You also have the parking lot to yourself because it is empty. The traffic is less too going to work. But for you if your body can't adjust to it, you got to do something so you won't get sick. Take care.

Hi stand! I really really am against working on night shift. It doesn't give any good to our body. You're right. It's never healthy. I was once got a job but when I found out that it was gonna change to a night shift job, I quickly quit the job. It has a lot of bad effects on the body. If your body knows that in 12 noon you eat your lunch, but you're sleeping at that moment, your body will naturally wake you up just to say you have to eat. And when you work against your body's routine, you would really feel more tired and exhausted. Better get a job that would not affect your body that much.

Night shifts can take a toll on the body if you don't take care of it well enough everytime. Well, here's my advice. If you know that you are going to work until late at night all to the morning, take some tonics daily to ensure the energy in your body is ongoing. If you still feel lethargic when working, drink a cup of coffee. Maximum of two cups will be enough or else you'll get caffeine poisoning.

Night shifts is dangerous because it prevents us to sleep at the time that our body should be resting. All the healing in our body happens at night. Our body are programmed to sleep when its night time. But if we need to be awake.. it alters things. Our sleep at night is very essential that even if we sleep 8 hours straight in the morning or afternoon, it seems so inefficient still compared to that at night.