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When a diet lacking in proper nutrients collides with a job that rarely lets you see the sun, vitamin D deficiency can rear its ugly head. Too much time in the sun of course can cause sunburns and raise the risk of skin cancer, but too little and the risk of heart disease skyrockets. Spending some relaxing time out in the sun and eating vitamin-D rich foods such as eggs can work wonders. Read this article…
For a shift worker in need of a good night’s sleep, a relaxing smoke or a soothing cigarette break on the porch is not the answer. Smoking has been linked with less restful sleeping by the American College of Chest Physicians, and a less restful sleep at night is one thing that extended hours workers do not need. Shift workers, especially those on the night shift, already get less sleep than day workers, and this inequity is only compounded since a far greater percentage of shift workers smoke than in the overall population. Suffering from sleep apnea, feeling fatigued at work, complaining about getting a whole four hours of sleep and waking up tired? Don’t let the smoke get in your eyes about solutions. Read this article…
Over twenty percent of the U.S. workforce holds jobs that the World Health Organization now considers possible causes of cancer. Most people who work extended hours, shifts, or nights have probably already seen the “Graveyard Shift Soon to Be Listed As ‘Probable’ Cause of Cancer” article, and gotten appropriately nervous. But, for the bad news before the good, shift work brings health risks that go far beyond the big threat of cancer. The good news is that shift work does not automatically cause cancer, of course, and many habits common among shift workers have long been known to increase the risk of cancer. So, certain lifestyle changes can quickly cause your risk of cancer, and other diseases and chronic problems, to plummet. Read this article…
Going for 22 hours without sleep is equivalent to having a blood alcohol level of 0.05. One is perfectly legal, but the other could cause you to be arrested for being behind the wheel and kicked out of work. Shift workers, especially night shift workers, might see nothing out of the ordinary in going 22 hours without sleep, but they pay for it with their health, and sometimes even with their lives. Exhaustion decreases alertness, attention and the ability to process new information, creating danger on the job. When working with machinery, as many shift workers do, or in health care of emergency services, one slip of attention can cause accidents, injury, and death. Bad sleep habits also set off a whole variety of health problems, including weight gain leading to obesity. Many existing issues, such as depression, asthma, and addiction to drugs or smoking can make sleep habits worse, and then continue to worsen themselves because of the troubled sleep. Sleeping pill prescriptions reached 56 million in 2008, showing the extent to which sleep problems haunt Americans. But this is a problem that can be conquered. Read this article…
