The About 9 million people in the U.S. are employed for shift work, what many people do not know is that it could be taking a serious toll on their health.

Through different health studies it has been seen that shift work has been related to cardiovascular disease, diabetes, obesity, sleep disorders and depression.

A shift worker is not defined as just someone who works overnights, but anyone who works out of the normal hours of 9 to 5 according to the National Sleep Foundation.

Here are some ways that shift work can effect your health:

It has a negative effect on your sleep – studies have shown that people who work the evening or night-shift tend to get fewer than six hours of sleep during the day. Likewise they are also not getting quality sleep.

Shift workers have also been linked to lower serotonin levels, which has an impact on sleep as well as “feeling good”.

Shift work increases your risk for obesity – sleep issues are linked to an increase in obesity risks. Also due to the fact that not everyone prepares their own food for work, vending machine food and other unhealthy options in the wee hours of the night can be linked to a obesity risk.

It increases workplace injuries – it has been shown that people who work the night almost double their risks of having a workplace injury.

Not having a normal sleep pattern and getting quality sleep causes drowsiness and fatigue which can lead to workplace injuries.

Research has shown that people working rotating shifts are more likely to experience an injury at work than those who work a regular day shift according to a study done by University of British Columbia’s School of Environmental Health.

These are just a few of the risk that can happen from shift work, there is also diabetes, depression, anger issues, etc. What we do know is that people need to make a living to support themselves and their families. Everyone goes to work with the intention of making a living and getting home to their families at the end of each and every shift.

In closing although we cannot get rid of shift work and we know the country needs shift workers to succeed it is important to know the risk factors and make sure that as an employer and an employee we are taking every necessary precaution to ensure that our businesses and workers are safe and able to perform their duties to the best of their abilities.