December 2001 Volume 82 Number 12 "serving the protectors"

The Police Journal this month begins a new health section and is delighted to welcome Dr Rod Pearce to its team of regular contributors. A former Australian Medical Association (SA) president, Dr Pearce will cover a wide range of health issues, with a particular emphasis on the police community. Call or write to the Police Journal with your comments on this new feature.

Werewolves in policing

Shift work and werewolves have something in common: they are affected by the light.

Because the daylight is a normal part of healthy life, anyone working shifts is at risk of serious health effects from this work.

Some of these include depression, drug dependence, suicide, stomach ulcers, heart disease and early death.

The nature of shift work itself compounds problems. Irritability, for example, which can begin with a combination caused by tiredness coming from shift work, not getting enough sleep through roster rotation and the odd hours needed to fit into the routine of the rest of the family and other people around you. To try to fix this, drug and alcohol use – and later abuse – can occur while trying to relax and get to sleep. Later, through increasing use, it may cause dependence and lead to depression.

Also, a combination of hormonal changes and alteration of eating habits leads to weight gain, or loss, because your body doesn’t always know when it’s time for breakfast, lunch or dinner.

But the early effects are of a more subtle nature. They are evidenced by lack of concentration, problems remembering things, slower reaction times at work and increased risk of accidents.

Fortunately, by recognizing these early signs and being careful to adjust your behaviour, you can get back on track.

So what does light have to do with all this?

The basic 24-hour rhythm that the body follows is based on daytime and normal activity associated with sunlight.

We have evolved using the sun to do most of the things we do in our day-to-day lives.

The light links in with the body through the pineal gland that sits in the brain next to the pathways from the eyes to the visual cortex (back of the brain that is used to see with).

The body knows when daylight time is and sets up a 24-hour cycle based around this called the circadian rhythm (cira – around; dian – day).

As part of that circadian rhythm, the body co-ordinates chosen hormones to be at their peak production in the waking/first part of that cycle, making us feel refreshed and active soon after we wake up.

Those hormones peak during active (daylight) hours and then change to allow the body to sleep and relax so it can replenish everything for the next day (night/sleep).

This rhythm builds in the normal internal clock that expects us to be awake during daylight and sleep during the night.

Shift work is exactly the opposite; and artificial light does not compensate for the driving of the cycle by the sun.

It also takes the body three to five days to change the cycle, even if you change the sunlight hours (as seen in people with jetlag).

Because some of these hormones are cortisone, adrenaline and insulin, the effects on the body also change those parts of the body affected by these hormones.

Recent research has shown increased risk of breast cancer for women who work shift work, showing these changes can have far-reaching effects.

Stomach ailments – such as indigestion, diarrhoea and constipation – are more common, possibly as a mixture of the stress of the shift work, as well as the dietary alterations that occur on the various shifts.

There is also an increased uptake of fats into the blood and associated increased risk of heart disease.

All of this is made worse by the fact that it is more difficult to keep up the regular exercise program that the body needs to be at peak condition. Getting into an exercise routine is the best way to keep the body in good physical shape, and shift work, even on a rotation basis, goes against the body’s natural rhythm.

To overcome this, it is important to be aware of the effects the daylight might be having on you.

Not that you will turn into a werewolf, but there are significant effects on the body and mind from working shift work and nights. To avoid this, you must carefully monitor your amount of sleep. What you eat, when and how much must be noted, and you need to be “extra good” about healthy food and drinking. Exercise is still important, but adjust for the extra tiredness and altered routines.

Take this all into account and then talk to members of your family. They might be able to help you make many of the adjustments that are necessary to help you survive the rigors of a rotation that includes different shifts. They might also be able to change their own routines, behaviour or expectations of you to help overcome these as well.

By making the proper allowances, the risks of shift work will have minimal effects on your body and mind. This will ensure you survive and avoid being like the werewolf: badly affected by the light.

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