Cardiovascular Disease (CVD)
Going against the body's circadian rhythms is shown to affect blood pressure and cholesterol levels. (Occupational Medicine, 2011, Preventing and Mitigating Nurse Fatigue, RNAO 2011)

Mortality rates from CVD are about 20 per cent higher for women who have spent many years working rotating night shifts. (American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 2015)

Shift work is linked to vascular events, which may have implications for public policy and occupational medicine. (Vyas et al., 2012 Preventing and Mitigating Nurse Fatigue, RNAO 2011)

Female nurses working rotating night shifts for more than five years have a modest increase in CVD mortality. (Gu et al., 2015)

Findings linking shift work to increased risk of CVD, metabolic syndrome and diabetes are suggestive, but not conclusive. (Wang, Armstrong, Cairns, Key, & Travis, 2011)

Diabetes
Shift workers face increased risk of Type 2 diabetes, including a 42 per cent increase for those working rotating shifts. (Occupational and Environmental Medicine, 2014)

Rates of Type 2 diabetes among shift workers are shown to increase the longer the person works shifts. (Evidence-Based Medicine, 2014)

Shift work is associated with an increased risk of diabetes mellitus. The increase was significantly higher among men, and among rotating shift workers. (Gan et al., 2015)

Mental Health
Studies indicate an elevated risk of mental health problems among shift workers. (Canadian Institute for Work and Health, 2010, Preventing and Mitigating Nurse Fatigue, RNAO 2011)

Cancer
The World Health Organization (WHO) classifies night shift work as a potential carcinogen. (2007)

A Canadian study shows women working shift work for more than 30 years are twice as likely to develop breast cancer. (Occupational and Environmental Medicine, 2013)

Published evidence suggests an association between night shift work and breast cancer, but is not conclusive. (Wang, Armstrong, Cairns, Key, & Travis, 2011)

Nurses working more than 15 years of rotating night shifts have a modest increase in lung cancer mortality. (Gu et al., 2015)

Night shift work is associated with an increased risk for breast cancer. (Jia et al., 2013)

Sick leave
Strong evidence was found linking fixed evening shifts and sick leave in female health-care workers. (Merkus et al., 2012)

Reproductive health
Shift work is associated with a low to moderate risk for adverse pregnancy outcomes. (Good; Grade A) (University of Texas at Austin School of Nursing, 2014)

General
Shift work is related to circadian rhythm and sleep disruptions; increased fatigue, patient errors, and accidents; poorer psychological well-being; cardiovascular problems; increased risk of constipation, stomach ulcers and stomach upsets; and potential risks to women of child-bearing age. (Royal College of Nursing, 2012)