Project code: IPA-139-Shift II
Project duration: ongoing
Descriptors: Work-related health hazards, work-related illnesses, workplace design, work organization
Objective/Aim: The aim of the project is to expand existing recommendations for the design and organization of shift work with a view to optimizing the prevention of possible health effects. The characteristics of specific shift systems on sleep, cancer, and other chronic diseases will be examined, and exposure circumstances associated with shift work will be taken into account. A particular focus will be placed on individual influencing factors such as chronotype and age.
Realization: An average of 20 million people in Germany work in some form of shift or weekend work, including about 4 million in night work.Shift work has been associated with acute and chronic health problems in various studies. In 2007, the International Agency for Research on Cancer classified long-term shift work as a probable carcinogen. Various studies have associated shift work with acute and chronic health problems. In 2007, for example, the International Agency for Research on Cancer classified long-term shift work, which is associated with circadian disruption, as probably carcinogenic (Group 2A).
Various projects are investigating the health effects of shift work on cancer and chronic diseases. For example, the Heinz-Nixdorf RECALL cohort analyzes various cancers, diabetes, and other health outcomes. An international pooled study of case-control studies on breast cancer is investigating the relationship between various shift system characteristics and breast cancer. As part of the longitudinal study on the social, psychological, and physiological consequences of permanent night work and 12-hour shifts, the IPA is investigating the differences between various shift systems and the role of chronotype, particularly in relation to sleep-wake rhythms. Furthermore, the IPA is investigating the role of lighting in the health effects of shift workers. The effects of dynamic lighting on shift workers are to be investigated as part of a comprehensive intervention study.