How Night Shift Workers Can Reset Their Body Clock for Better Sleep

From usmagazine.com

About 15 million Americans clock in when the rest of the country is winding down, and the toll on their bodies is steeper than most people realize. Working against your body’s natural clock creates a compounding cycle that affects everything from mood to long-term health — and the challenge of night shift sleep goes well beyond just feeling tired.

The good news: researchers have identified which strategies actually help reset the body clock, and which popular fixes are wasting your time.

What Night Shift Work Actually Does to Your Body

Your body runs on a roughly 24-hour internal clock, and night work forces it to be alert during hours it’s built to sleep. Long-term night shift work is associated with a significantly elevated risk of cardiovascular disease — up to 40 percent higher than day workers — as well as increased rates of metabolic disorders, depression and anxiety. Night shift workers also produce 34-54 percent less melatonin over a 24-hour period compared to day workers, with the steepest drop among people who are naturally early risers.

The clinical version of this struggle has a name: Shift Work Sleep Disorder, or SWSD — persistent insomnia or excessive sleepiness tied directly to a work schedule lasting more than three months. A March 2025 study in Clocks & Sleep found it affects anywhere from 26-48 percent of night shift workers.

Why Resetting Your Body Clock Is Harder Than It Sounds

Most shift workers assume their bodies will eventually adjust if they stick with it. The reality is messier. New night workers typically take two to four weeks to even begin adapting, and full adaptation rarely happens for people on rotating schedules. Permanent night workers fare better — a fixed schedule, even an unusual one, is easier on the body than one that constantly changes.

Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images

Morning light on the commute home can undo body clock progress made overnight by suppressing melatonin right when it should be rising, and family obligations on days off pull workers back toward daytime rhythms. A January 2026 BMJ Open analysis confirmed shift work is linked to extensively disrupted sleep — especially for permanent night workers.

How to Use Light to Your Advantage

Light is the single most powerful tool shift workers have, and using it well comes down to timing. Bright light during the first six hours of a night shift keeps melatonin suppressed and alertness sharp. A January 2025 meta-analysis in Scientific Reports found light therapy significantly improved total sleep time and sleep efficiency in shift workers.

The flip side matters just as much — blue-light blocking glasses worn on the morning commute home help prevent sunlight from triggering wakefulness before you’ve slept. Once home, blackout curtains, a sleep mask and a cool room around 65 degrees Fahrenheit protect daytime sleep from the cues that signal “wake up” to the brain.

The Right Way to Use Melatonin for Shift Work

Melatonin is widely available and widely misunderstood. Timing matters far more than dose — taking 0.5-3mg about 30 minutes before intended daytime sleep helps initiate rest, and most clinical studies supporting its use work in that range, not the larger amounts often sold at drugstores. For rotating shift workers, a low dose on days off can ease the transition back toward a daytime schedule.

One important note: melatonin is a timing tool, not a sedative. It won’t overcome a bright room or a noisy house, and it works best as part of a broader routine. If symptoms of SWSD persist for months, that’s worth a conversation with a doctor.

Daily Habits That Make the Biggest Difference for Night Shift Sleep

A 20-30 minute nap before or during a night shift sharpens alertness without leaving you groggy — longer naps tend to backfire. Caffeine works best at the start of a shift rather than throughout, and cutting it off four to six hours before sleep keeps it from circulating when you need to rest.

Consistency on days off is one of the most underrated strategies available — shifting sleep time by no more than an hour or two protects whatever adaptation has been built, while large swings back to a daytime schedule create fresh disruption every week. Two habits worth avoiding: being awake for 17 hours impairs judgment to the equivalent of a 0.05 percent blood alcohol level, and alcohol — though it feels sedating — reduces sleep quality overall.

The path forward for most shift workers isn’t perfection. It’s building a few consistent, evidence-based habits and knowing when persistent symptoms are worth bringing to a doctor.

https://www.usmagazine.com/celebrity-news/news/how-night-shift-workers-can-reset-their-body-clock-for-better-sleep/ 

Study Finds Surprising Link Between Sleep & This Common Joint Issue

From mindbodygreen.com

By Zhané Slambee

Sleep rarely comes up in conversations about joint health. Most guidance focuses on weight management, exercise, and avoiding injury, and for good reason.

But a large new study suggests that what happens at night may matter more for your joints than previously understood.

Researchers analysed data from nearly 500,000 adults and found that short sleep, frequent insomnia, and night shift work were all independently linked to a higher risk of developing osteoarthritis (OA), a degenerative joint disease and needing joint replacement surgery. And many of those associations held even after accounting for body weight. 

                                                                          Image by Addictive Creatives / Stocksy

About the study

Osteoarthritis develops when the cartilage cushioning your joints breaks down over time. It's driven by a mix of factors: joint injury, metabolic changes, aging, and genetics. But researchers have been looking more closely at another possible contributor—disruptions to your body's internal clock, or circadian rhythm.

Cartilage goes through daily cycles of stress and recovery. During the day, it absorbs load and metabolic demand. At night, it recovers; rebuilding thickness and water content. 

The cells that make up cartilage (called chondrocytes, which is the only cell type found in cartilage) follow their own internal daily rhythm, which helps coordinate that repair process. In animal studies, disrupting the circadian clock led to cartilage breakdown similar to what's seen in OA. 

To see whether that pattern holds in people, researchers at Washington University used data from the UK Biobank, a large prospective study of approximately 500,000 adults in the United Kingdom recruited between 2006 and 2010. Participants (median age 58, 54% female) answered baseline questions about their sleep duration, how often they experienced trouble falling or staying asleep, and whether they worked shifts.

Researchers then tracked four outcomes over the following 8 to 13 years: knee OA, hip OA, total knee replacement, and total hip replacement.

Short sleep, insomnia, & night shifts all raised OA risk

People sleeping fewer than six hours a night had a 41% higher risk of knee OA and a 31% higher risk of needing a knee replacement compared with those sleeping seven hours. 

For the hip, the numbers were similar—39% higher risk of hip OA and 21% higher risk of hip replacement.

People who "usually" had trouble falling asleep or staying asleep had a 34% higher risk of knee OA and a 40% higher risk of knee replacement compared with those who "never or rarely" experienced those problems. 

Similar increases were seen for hip OA (30% higher risk) and hip replacement (24% higher risk).

Night shift workers, specifically those working through the hours of 12 a.m. to 6 a.m., had a 24% higher risk of knee OA and a 28% higher risk of knee replacement compared with people who didn't work shifts.

Night shift work was not significantly linked to hip OA or hip replacement, a pattern the researchers note is consistent with animal research: when the circadian clock gene BMAL1 (a key protein that helps regulate the body's internal clock) is knocked out in mice, cartilage in the knee breaks down, but not in the hip.

Why the associations held even after controlling for weight 

We've always thought that poor sleep raises OA risk mainly because it contributes to weight gain, which then puts more stress on your joints. But the data here tell a more complicated story.

After accounting for body weight, all of the associations weakened but didn't disappear. People sleeping fewer than six hours still had a 31% higher risk of knee OA and a 20% higher risk of knee replacement. Insomnia remained linked to all four endpoints. Night shift work remained linked to knee OA and knee replacement specifically.

The researchers also ran a separate analysis excluding anyone who already reported at least three months of knee or hip pain at the time of their sleep assessment. This was to rule out the possibility that people were sleeping poorly simply because they were already in pain.

The associations held there too.

Why knees may be especially vulnerable

Across all three sleep factors (duration, insomnia, and shift work) the signal was strongest and most consistent for the knee. The researchers offer a few explanations.

The knee may depend more heavily on a functioning circadian clock than the hip does, partly because of differences in how the two joints are structured and how hip OA tends to develop (often through issues like hip dysplasia or impingement).

Weight also plays a bigger role in knee OA than hip OA, and disrupted sleep likely influences the knee partly through that pathway.

One other pattern stood out: among night shift workers whose jobs rarely or never required heavy physical labour, the risk increases were even larger; 43% higher knee OA risk and 40% higher knee replacement risk.

The researchers suggest that circadian disruption may have the biggest impact on people who don't already have elevated OA risk from physical wear on the job.

Sleep habits worth building for your joint health long-term

Circadian rhythms and sleep can be improved through lifestyle changes and sleep hygiene. This points to new potential ways to reduce OA risk before joint pain ever develops. Here are strategies worth considering:

Keep a consistent sleep schedule: Seven hours appears to be the protective threshold in this data. Going to bed and waking at the same time every day helps anchor your body's internal clock.

Get morning light exposure: Light is one of the most powerful cues for setting your circadian rhythm. Getting outside in the first hour after waking helps your body clock stay on track.

Limit artificial light at night: Dimming screens and lights in the hours before bed supports your body's natural melatonin production and helps protect your sleep timing.

Address insomnia early: Frequent insomnia was linked to risk increases comparable to (and in some cases greater than) sleeping fewer than six hours.

If you work night shifts, minimize circadian disruption where you can: Changing your schedule may not be an option, but strategies like timed light exposure, strategic napping, and keeping a consistent routine on days off can help reduce the mismatch between your internal clock and your work hours.

The takeaway

This large prospective study found that sleeping fewer than six hours, experiencing frequent insomnia, and working night shifts were all linked to higher osteoarthritis risk (particularly at the knee) even after accounting for body weight.

The findings suggest that sleep quality and circadian health may be modifiable risk factors for OA, alongside the more commonly discussed pillars of exercise and weight management.

https://www.mindbodygreen.com/articles/poor-sleep-could-be-quietly-raising-your-osteoarthritis-risk-study-finds 

How to Properly Reset Your Body Clock as a Night Shift Worker, According to the Latest Sleep Science

From star-telegram.com

By Allison Palmer

About 15 million Americans work the night shift, and their sleep struggles carry stakes far beyond feeling tired. Working overnight forces the body to stay alert during hours it’s programmed to sleep, and resetting that internal clock is harder than most people expect. Here’s what science actually says about why it happens and what works. 

How Shift Work Disrupts Your Body Clock 

The circadian rhythm is a roughly 24-hour internal clock regulated primarily by light. Night shift work flips that signal, and the consequences add up fast. Night shift workers produce 34-54% less melatonin over a 24-hour period than day workers, with the steepest suppression among people whose natural preference is daytime activity. 

Chronic circadian misalignment is associated with a 30-40% higher risk of cardiovascular disease, metabolic disorders, depression and anxiety. Shift Work Sleep Disorder, or SWSD, is the clinical name for the persistent insomnia or excessive sleepiness that lasts more than three months and is tied directly to a person’s work schedule. A March 2025 UK Biobank analysis in Clocks & Sleep estimated SWSD affects up to 48% of people with irregular schedules. 

Why Resetting Your Body Clock Is So Hard 

Rotating shift workers face the toughest road. Unlike permanent night workers, who can begin to partially adapt over two to four weeks, rotating workers never fully adjust. A January 2026 BMJ Open analysis of UK Biobank data confirmed shift work is linked to extensively disordered sleep, especially among overnight workers. 

Two everyday forces undo adaptation. Morning light during the commute home suppresses melatonin right when workers need it to rise and trigger sleep. And on days off, family and social obligations pull workers back toward a daytime schedule, creating what researchers call “social jet lag,” a chronic mismatch between biological clock and social calendar that compounds health risks well beyond simple sleep deprivation. 

What Actually Helps Shift Workers Sleep 

Light is the single most powerful lever available. Bright light in the 2,500-10,000 lux range during the first six hours of a night shift suppresses melatonin and enhances alertness. On the commute home, blue-light blocking or amber-tinted glasses prevent morning sun from resetting the clock before bed. A January 2025 meta-analysis in Scientific Reports found light therapy significantly improved total sleep time and sleep efficiency for shift workers. 

Melatonin can help, but timing matters more than dose. Most clinical evidence supports 0.5-3mg taken about 30 minutes before intended daytime sleep. Higher doses are not more effective and can leave users groggy. 

Other evidence-based strategies worth building into a routine: 

Strategic napping: A 20-30 minute nap before a shift improves alertness without grogginess. Longer naps risk the disoriented feeling that can slow the start of a shift. 

Sleep environment: Blackout curtains or a sleep mask, white noise or earplugs and a cool room around 65°F make daytime sleep possible. 

Caffeine discipline: Use it at shift start, not throughout. Stop four to six hours before intended sleep. 

Consistency on days off: Shifting sleep time by no more than one to two hours preserves adaptation. Large swings back to a daytime schedule wipe out a week’s progress. 

What Doesn’t Work for Night Shift Sleep 

Trying to power through is the most common and most damaging mistake. Cognitive impairment after 17 hours awake is roughly equivalent to a blood alcohol level of 0.05%. Alcohol as a sleep aid backfires by reducing REM sleep and worsening overall sleep quality. And schedules that swing wildly between day and night sleep are harder on the body than a fixed pattern. Among rotating workers, the ones who keep the most consistent rhythm within their rotation tend to adapt best. 

This article was created by content specialists using various tools, including AI.

https://www.star-telegram.com/entertainment/living/article315771423.html 

Is your job costing you sleep?

From consumeraffairs.com

New research reveals how desk time and odd hours may quietly disrupt your rest

• Findings from a recent study found that sedentary jobs—where you sit most of the day—were tied to a 37% rise in insomnia-like symptoms over 10 years.

• Non-traditional work schedules (like evening or weekend shifts) led to a 66% higher risk of needing “catch-up sleep” such as naps or sleeping in.

• These sleep problems often persist: around 90% of people with insomnia-like issues stayed in that pattern a decade later.

Researchers from the University of South Florida set out to see how modern jobs—with lots of screen time, sitting still, or odd work hours—might quietly chip away at our sleep. 

They used data from the Midlife in the United States study, tracking over 1,000 full-time employees twice across roughly a 10‑year span. Instead of looking at just hours asleep, they explored different “sleeper types”—like good sleeper, insomnia sleeper, and catch‑up sleeper—considering how these patterns evolved over time. 

Findings from a recent study highlighted that non-traditional work schedules, as well as sedentary work, can lead to a higher risk of insomnia. Image (c) ConsumerAffairs

The study

Participants reported on a range of sleep dimensions: how long they slept, how regular their schedule was, how long it took to fall asleep, symptoms like night-time waking or daytime tiredness, and even napping habits. 

The research team used a technique called latent transition analysis, which groups people by patterns instead of single traits. That lets them track how someone might move from being a good sleeper to an insomnia or catch‑up sleeper over the decade—and see whether job traits predicted those shifts.

The results

The study found that most workers (around 80%) fall into sedentary jobs, and those folks were 37% more likely to end up in the “insomnia sleeper” group—struggling with falling asleep, waking at night, and still feeling drained the next day.

The researchers also found that people working nonstandard shifts—like evenings, nights or weekends—were 66% more likely to be “catch-up sleepers,” meaning they needed extra naps or slept in just to function. 

These weren’t temporary issues: nearly 90% of those in the insomnia group stayed there 10 years later—showing that work-related sleep problems can seriously stick. 

Why this matters 

This study shows that it’s not just stress keeping you up—it could be your job’s basic setup: sitting all day or working odd hours. These factors don’t just affect you temporarily—they can shape your sleep for years. 

The good news? Since job design matters, employees (and employers) might find ways to reshape work habits—stand more, move more, simplify schedules—to protect sleep long-term.

https://www.consumeraffairs.com/news/is-your-job-costing-you-sleep-080525.html

The Impact of Daylight Saving Time on Sleep Disorders: Challenges for Patients With Insomnia and Circadian Rhythm Disruptions

From neurologylive.com

Experts discussed how daylight saving time affects sleep patterns, particularly in individuals with insomnia and other sleep disorders, highlighting the challenges of adaptation and the risks of chronic sleep loss

Daylight saving time involves advancing clocks by 1 hour in the spring and returning to standard time in the fall, disrupting the alignment between the sleep-wake cycle and natural light exposure. This shift can negatively impact sleep health by reducing total sleep duration, altering circadian rhythms, and increasing sleep fragmentation. Research indicates that daylight saving time contributes to higher rates of sleep deprivation, particularly in individuals with pre-existing sleep disorders, and is associated with increased risks of metabolic, cardiovascular, and cognitive impairments.1 The transition is especially challenging for those with rigid schedules, such as shift workers and students, who may struggle with prolonged circadian misalignment.

In collaboration with the American Academy of Sleep Medicine (AASM), NeurologyLive® held a roundtable discussion where sleep experts shared their clinical perspectives on the health impacts of the time change as well as solutions. The panellists in this conversation included clinical psychologist Jennifer Martin, PhD, who serves as professor of medicine at UCLA and was recently the past president of the AASM, neurologist and sleep medicine specialist Karin Johnson, MD, who serves as the co-chair of the Coalition for Permanent Standard Time and the vice president of Save Standard Time, and pulmonologist Seema Khosla, MD, FCCP, FAASM, who practices sleep medicine in Fargo, North Dakota.

In this first episode, sleep specialists examined the effects of daylight saving time on individuals with sleep disorders, with a focus on insomnia and circadian misalignment. They highlighted how the springtime change leads to acute and chronic sleep disruptions, particularly for those with early start times, shift work, or delayed sleep phase disorder. The conversation also explored strategies for mitigating these effects, including gradual schedule adjustments, prioritizing sufficient sleep, and addressing social jet lag. The experts emphasized that while some individuals may briefly experience improved sleep, overall, the transition can exacerbate existing sleep issues and contribute to long-term sleep deprivation.

Transcript edited for clarity.

Isabella Ciccone, MPH: Thank you all for joining this great discussion on the time change, which has been such a debated topic for the longest time. I feel this will be a valuable conversation to share with our audience in March, coinciding with the time change and World Sleep Day. To kick things off, our first question is: How do time changes for daylight saving time impact sleep patterns in patients with existing sleep disorders, such as insomnia? Dr. Martin, would you like to take this one first?

Jennifer Martin, PhD: Sure. People with chronic insomnia—meaning they struggle with falling asleep or staying asleep for months or even years—often experience worsening symptoms when their sleep schedule is disrupted. Interestingly, with this specific time change, Saturday night is shortened by one hour. Some people with insomnia actually sleep a little better for the first couple of nights, but they struggle with adjusting their sleep-wake schedule in relation to the rising and setting of the sun. So, while there might be a brief period of slightly better sleep due to the shorter night, it doesn’t last.

Seema Khosla, MD, FCCP, FAASM: That’s a really interesting point. I’m not sure it gets a lot of attention, but in our practice, when someone has a chronic sleep disorder, we try to establish a plan for the time change. It can be as simple as applying the general advice we give everyone—gradually adjusting bedtime, wake time, meal times, exercise, and light exposure. For those with sleep disorders, we emphasize that while they already have a condition, we don’t want to introduce additional sleep issues by not getting enough rest. During every visit, we stress the importance of adequate sleep so their underlying disorder doesn’t worsen.

Jennifer Martin, PhD: I also want to mention that any temporary improvement people with insomnia experience in the spring is followed by a temporary worsening in the fall. So, it’s not that their condition truly improves—it just seems slightly better for a couple of days. But when the night gets longer with the fall time change, symptoms get worse again.

Karin Johnson, MD: In general, studies show that most people experience greater sleep loss during the spring time change. This happens because we lose an hour of sleep and transition from standard time—which is more aligned with our natural rhythms—to daylight saving time, which is more misaligned. Some people with delayed sleep phase might welcome the later sunrises and sunsets because they prefer staying up later. However, for night owls, this shift actually pushes their schedule even later, making them more prone to social jet lag. This is especially true for children, who end up sleeping in even later on weekends compared to school or work days, making it harder for them to fall asleep at a reasonable time throughout daylight saving time.

Studies show that when sunset shifts an hour later, people lose about 19 minutes of sleep on average. This loss is especially pronounced for those who need to wake up before 8:30 a.m. If you have the luxury of sleeping in, you may not suffer as much chronic sleep loss. But for those with early start times—such as shift workers, parents, and anyone with a 7 a.m. workday—daylight saving time can make it harder to get enough sleep throughout the entire period.

REFERENCES
1. Sleep experts push for adoption of permanent standard time for public health, safety, and efficiency. News Release. American Academy of Sleep Medicine. Published January 27, 2025. Accessed March 13, 2025. https://aasm.org/sleep-experts-push-for-adoption-of-permanent-standard-time-for-public-health-safety-and-efficiency

https://www.neurologylive.com/view/impact-daylight-saving-time-sleep-disorders-challenges-patients-insomnia-circadian-rhythm-disruptions 

Late shifts, sedentary lifestyles, hyperconnectivity, stress: How work robs us of sleep

From english.elpais.com

Over time, our schedules encourage a sustained alteration in biological cycles. This translates into an alteration in sleep rhythms

Carlos O. N. is 44 years old and works for the Madrid Metro. He’s been pulling the night shift for 10 years. Before that, he worked the evening shift for five years, finishing at 2 a.m. He tells EL PAÍS that he sleeps between five and six hours a day. However, he clarifies that reaching six is pretty exceptional.

“Anyway, I have the feeling that it doesn’t matter how many hours you sleep, because they’re never as restorative,” he sighs. “Sleeping during the day doesn’t produce the same quality of rest as sleeping at night.”

At work, he explains, it’s common for colleagues on the night shift to chat about the amount of sleep they get. As a general rule, they tend to only get a few low-quality hours. “You go against the normal life of society,” Carlos adds. “And, if you want to adapt to it, you end up feeling sleepy; you drag along a sleep deficit that takes its toll on your body. Over the years, I’ve noticed a fairly significant deterioration.”

“Capitalism is killing us with sleep,” says Juan Antonio Madrid, a professor of Physiology and director of the Chronobiology and Sleep Laboratory at the University of Murcia in Spain. During an interview with EL PAÍS, the expert laments that our society is plagued by “chronodisruption,” in which excessive light at night, long shifts, sedentary lifestyles, screen usage before going to sleep and distorted work and leisure schedules encourage a sustained, long-term alteration of biological rhythms. This ultimately translates into an alteration of sleep rhythms.

In his reflection, Madrid repeatedly refers to the impact that work schedules have on sleep.

According to the results of a recent study, non-standard work schedules — namely shift work, especially at night — together with sedentary jobs, are two of the most important threats to sleep health.

Specifically, non-standard shift work schedules correlate with a 66% higher risk of employees needing to “catch-up on sleep,” which is defined as frequent naps, or sleeping in on weekends. “The way we design work can pose serious, long-term threats to healthy sleep, which involves more than just getting eight hours. It also involves falling asleep easily, sleeping through the night and having a consistent sleep schedule,” says psychologist Claire Smith, a researcher at the University of South Florida and lead author of the study.

For María José Martínez Madrid — coordinator of the Chronobiology working group of the Spanish Sleep Society (SSS) — these results fully coincide with past scientific evidence, which indicates that night shifts and rotating shifts “make it difficult to fall asleep and stay asleep, while they reduce the duration and quality of sleep and cause alterations in circadian rhythms.”

In fact, the impact is such that shift work sleep disorder (SWSD) is already recognized by the medical community. The disorder is characterized by the presence of insomnia and excessive sleepiness. Its development, the coordinator adds, is due to the desynchronization that occurs between work hours and the internal circadian clock: “When work is done at times that don’t coincide with the natural phases of sleep and wakefulness, a sleep debt accumulates. Holidays and/or weekends become the opportunity to compensate for this debt, although this recovery is never complete, since lost sleep isn’t recovered proportionally.”

In this regard, Martínez recommends that employees who work shifts maintain a sleep schedule that’s as regular as possible — even during days off — and plan strategic naps before or during night shifts. She also calls on companies to facilitate access to lounges and encourage the possibility of short naps during long shifts, while providing education on sleep hygiene and circadian health to their workers. And, whenever possible, firms should establish shifts that respect biological rhythms.

                                             Non-standard working hours, along with sedentary jobs, are two of the most significant threats to sleep health                                                                                                      Westend61 (Getty Images)

Sedentary work and insomnia

On the other hand, according to the study, sedentary work is linked to a 37% increase in insomnia symptoms among employees. “Millions of years of evolution have prepared us to be physically active and eat during the day — outside, when there’s light — and to look for a safe space to sleep and recover at night, when it’s dark. Sedentary work — especially if it’s done in spaces with little natural lighting and nothing reminiscent of nature — can break this pattern for which our body is prepared. Therefore, this can have a negative impact on night time rest,” argues Manuel de Entrambasaguas, a neurophysiologist at the Hospital Clínico de Valencia.

María José Martínez Madrid agrees, emphasizing that physical activity contributes to regulating the circadian system and favors the accumulation of sleep pressure throughout the day. Prolonged sedentary work, on the other hand, can reduce this pressure and, therefore, make it difficult to fall asleep. “Furthermore, the lack of exposure to natural light — which is common in sedentary office jobs — can alter the secretion of melatonin and the feeling of nighttime sleepiness,” she warns.

“A sedentary lifestyle makes us sick,” adds De Entrambasaguas, who points out that, frequently, after a long day — in which we’ve spent a lot of time sitting — a feeling of tiredness is overwhelming: “We’re looking forward to getting home to lie down on the sofa. But this is a bad, sick tiredness: the result of a lack of activity. It’s a very different feeling from the good tiredness we feel after doing sports, or having been active by walking or hiking, when we also generate endorphins.”

For this reason, the expert considers it essential to maintain minimum levels of activity at work, taking advantage of any opportunity to exercise. This recommendation is seconded by Martínez Madrid, who highlights the need to increase physical activity during the day, to expose oneself to natural light (especially in the mornings), to go to and from work by bike or on foot — when possible — and to take active breaks during the workday: “Getting up and moving for at least five minutes every hour can mitigate the effects of a sedentary lifestyle.”

Stress and 24-hour jobs

Crammed schedules and sedentary lifestyles aren’t the only ways in which work can affect night time rest. Daniel Madero, 42, has been working in Valencia for almost 20 years in a multinational technology company. He points out that, from the start, work affected his sleep, especially because of travel. However, this impact increased as he took on more responsibilities, had more people to supervise and was responsible for managing more complex projects with bigger clients.

This, he points out, has generated three situations that have directly affected his rest: “On the one hand, there are the marathon days, during which I’ve had to stay at the office until three in the morning solving a client’s problem. Then, I have to come back at nine. On the other hand, there’s stress and tension, all those problems that you have in your head, which make you go to bed with anxiety. Because of that, it’s impossible to fall asleep. And, finally, I have very restless sleep, with nightmares related to the problems I have at work,” he sighs.

“You end up building up so much stress, so much pressure, that you end up developing such a great panic about your job that it’s difficult for you to get up in the morning to face the day,” Madero laments.

According to a study published this past January, work stress — in the medium and long-term — is related to a notable increase in sleep disorders. Another study from 2023 also associated high-tension work with professionals who have short, unsatisfactory, inefficient and irregular sleep.

“Work stress causes hyperactivation of the mind. As a result, we spend the entire workday thinking about work problems, either for specific reasons, or as a discomfort or background noise. These thoughts — plus the unpleasant emotions and physical sensations that sometimes accompany them — can persist and even amplify in the stillness of the night,” Manuel de Entrambasaguas explains.

According to the neurophysiologist, this is combined with one of the characteristics of today’s societies: hyperconnectivity. This often leads to the “abusive invasion” of personal rest time, due to instant messages or work-related emails, which can promote the “hyperactivation of the mind, which is typical of insomnia.” Meanwhile, sitting in front of the computer at night to finish pending work tasks — in front of inadequate light sources — leads to insufficient sleep.

According to De Entrambasaguas, work stress and sleep have a bidirectional relationship, which can lead employees to fall into a kind of vicious circle. Stress at work — as scientific evidence shows — can cause a deterioration in sleep. And, in turn, the lack of restful sleep negatively affects our functioning the next day and can negatively interfere with the psychological mechanisms that allow us to solve tasks or problems. This generates stress at work, and — once again — non-restorative sleep. Ultimately, according to the results of a study published in 2019, this can have harmful implications for cardiovascular health. The combination of work stress and a lack of sleep increases the risk of coronary and cardiovascular mortality in workers with hypertension.

As the neurophysiologist notes, the available scientific evidence reliably links poor or insufficient sleep with a higher risk of accidents, absenteeism and presenteeism at work, comorbidity with other physical and mental illnesses, lower productivity, less creativity and worse relationships with colleagues and clients. “Based on this evidence,” he concludes, “it seems clear that taking care of sleep benefits everyone… both employers and employees.”

https://english.elpais.com/health/2025-03-09/late-shifts-sedentary-lifestyles-hyperconnectivity-stress-how-work-robs-us-of-sleep.html