This paper is a review of the literature related to health, performance, and safety problems associated with night shift work. The review of articles and research papers focused on circadian misalignment between the individual’s internal circadian clock and activities such as work, sleep, and eating. There is also discussion about chronic partial sleep deprivation and melatonin suppression at night. The articles reviewed include theory papers and research papers.
The purpose of this paper is to provide a review for researchers, clinicians, and students interested in sleep and circadian rhythms of shift workers.
The authors do not follow the typical systematic review of the literature guidelines but format the paper addressing the following topics: health problems associated with night shift work; countermeasures for alertness, performance, and safety decrements during night shift work; phase shifting the circadian clock for adaptation to night shift work; creating partial circadian alignment to accommodate days off; and recommended sleep and light schedule to reduce the circadian misalignment of night work.
Disruption of the circadian rhythm can pose health risks to night workers. The review of the literature identifies methods that nighttime workers can use to minimize disruption of the circadian rhythm by wearing sunglasses on the way home from work in the morning, sleeping in a dark room, exposure to a bright light during the night shift, and by going outside in the afternoon wearing lighter sunglasses to phase-advance the light for the night shift.
The major limitation of this paper was the lack of explanation as to the databases that were searched, and the number of articles that were reviewed or available on the topic. The method of inclusion or exclusion of articles was not discussed. This paper provides more information for managers and employees who are involved with shiftwork.