Developing Exposure Metrics Using a Prospective Repository of Work Hours, Sleep and Circadian Phenotypes: The Nurses Health Study 3

Details

• Personal Author:
  Chavarro J ; Gaskins A ; Lawson C ; Rich-Edwards J ; Schernhammer E ; Vetter C
• Description:
  Background: Shift work has been associated with a wide range of adverse health and safety outcomes, presumably as work hours interfere with the individual 24h-rhythm in physiology and behavior. This individual 24h-rhythm is highly variable, as notable in the large inter-individual variability in timing of sleep-wake behavior, also termed chronotype. Indeed, small-scale cross-sectional studies suggest that the level of circadian misalignment and sleep duration in shift workers depends, at least in part, on their chronotype. Some recent evidence from individual prospective and case-control studies also suggests an interaction between shift work exposure and chronotype and the risk of diabetes, breast and prostate cancer. To better tackle the underlying work schedule-related factors presumably contributing to chronic disease outcomes, we have introduced systematic assessments of work schedule characteristics, sleep, and chronotype into the Nurses' Health Study 3 (NHS3). Our aim is to develop novel metrics that will capture the interaction between the individual phenotype and work schedule characteristics. Methods: The NHS3 is an ongoing, open cohort study of US and Canadian male and female nurses, with currently over 40,000 participants who have responded to bi-annual online questionnaires since 2010. Data collection includes information on occupation, work hours (e.g. types of shifts, start and end times, frequency, and duration of exposure) and chronotype (sleep timing on free days and circadian preference). We also query sleep duration, napping behavior during night shifts, sleep medication use, and sleep apnea. In addition, information on chronic disease risk factors, such as body weight, diet, and smoking behavior is collected. To date, 15,817 participants have responded to the chronotype and work schedule questionnaires which were introduced a various points over follow-up. We will create measures of occupational circadian strain to compare work schedules and examine associations with body mass index (BMI). Results: Data will become available in November 2016 and we will describe work schedules in this population of health care professionals. We will present the derivation of novel circadian exposure metrics in NHS3, and present their cross-sectional relationship with BMI. Conclusion: Taken together, we seek to develop widely applicable metrics for personalized occupational risk assessment, directly reflecting circadian strain as one of the central biological mechanisms linking shift work and adverse health outcomes. Ultimately, those newly developed metrics can be used to examine the relationship between work schedule-associated circadian strain and health and safety outcomes across industry settings and sectors. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Body Weight Circadian Rhythm Cohort Studies Health Personnel Occupational Health Safety Shift Work Schedule
• Keywords:
  BMI Body Mass Index Body Weight Circadian Rhythms Cohort Studies Health Care Workers Nurses Shift Work Work Schedules
• Publisher:
  Working Time Society (WTS)
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Grant
• Genre:
  Abstract or Summary
• Place as Subject:
  Massachusetts ; Ohio ; OSHA Region 1 ; OSHA Region 5
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  DSHEFS - Division of Surveillance, Hazard Evaluations, and Field Studies
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  38
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20063865
• Citation:
  23rd International Symposium on Shiftwork and Working Time, June 19-23, 2017, Northern Territory, Australia. Vienna, Austria: Working Time Society (WTS), 2017 Jun; :38
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2017
• NORA Priority Area:
  Healthcare and Social Assistance
• Performing Organization:
  Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• Start Date:
  20160901
• Source Full Name:
  23rd International Symposium on Shiftwork and Working Time, June 19-23, 2017, Northern Territory, Australia
• End Date:
  20180831
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:0d8fb7cda6ca635ce90a241a5510343d15017db22a09fe4b71148f1ab2e803ca9963574e1e43902599ceb4127eacc1e6032a723a4b832ee4c5a14a46ba529a1c
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/222408/cdc_222408_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 759.03 KB ]