Don’t Fight Mother Nature
Humans have long believed we can fight Mother Nature. In a 24×7 modern world this will certainly be the case. It is not even a bad thing. We rely on emergency services at any time day or night. Computer operations must run around the clock. Like most things in the HealthCare Too model for Holistic Health there can be give & take to create balance. The problem stems from ignoring that the situation is out of balance.
Days after the Nobel Prize went to scientists who discovered the genes that control our body clock, a review of 28 studies shows what happens when you fight Mother Nature: the meta-analysis shows working the night shift increases the risk of obesity, which means nurses, police officers, firefighters, and warehouse staff need to take precautions to avoid abdominal obesity.
“Shift work has recently been identified as an important occupational hazard, with a growing body of evidence showing an association between shift work and adverse health effects such as metabolism abnormalities that include obesity,” authors from the Chinese University of Hong Kong, write in their paper, which appears online today in Obesity Reviews.
Researchers who have conducted laboratory experiments involving study subjects who sleep during the day and are awake at night find that the reversal of circadian rhythm causes the metabolism to slow and the body to produce less insulin, giving it less ability to control blood glucose. While the effect may be slow, it translates into higher weight over time. Practically speaking, night shift workers may have less access to healthy food choices.
Source: Night shift boosts risk of #obesity, especially #bellyfat
Restoring Balance
The best remedy, obviously, is to sleep at night and stay in tune with the natural Circadian rhythm. When that is not an option, however, it is critical to restore balance for the person. The article rightly pointed out that night shift may simply not have access to healthy food choices. Most restaurants are probably closed. Public transit might even be suspended or at least reduced. A candy bar from the vending machine and cup of coffee may help keep the person awake but at what cost to health? What about the impact on social interactions and family? And, of course, the need for sunshine. Where we create imbalances are also opportunities to offset them with other choices like better nutrition or UV lamps for night shift.
Our Model
The HealthCare Too model provides for a holistic approach to health. We look for articles and knowledge to help consumers and their care teams make holistic health decisions and also shop for the best deals in holistic health so you can find them here! We appreciate the value of surgery and pharmaceuticals but want to make more paths available for your HealthCare Too. See our model for Holistic Health for more information!
Shop HealthCare Too for items to help with your Holistic Health.
