Working at night could impair memory in older people

By Jim Leffman via SWNS

Shift work could impair memory and cognition in those who are middle-aged or older, a new study claims.

The research looked at nearly 50,000 adults who undertook work outside the normal 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. day.

They found that those who did night shifts or rotational shifts were worst affected.

The team from York University in Canada used data from the Canadian Longitudinal Study on Ageing for the study published in the journal PLOS ONE.

The 47,811 participants included self-reported information on employment and work schedules alongside results of cognitive function tests.

One in every five (21 percent) reported having been exposed to some kind of shift work over their career.

Higher rates of cognitive impairment were found among participants who reported to be exposed to night shift work during their current job or night shift work during their longest job.

Night shift work was associated with memory function impairment and rotating shift work was associated with impairment of executive function.

Study author Dr. Durdana Khan said: "The study findings suggest a potential link between shift work exposure and cognitive function impairment.

"We speculate that disruptive circadian stimuli may play a role in neurodegeneration contributing to cognitive impairment.

"However, additional studies are needed to confirm the association between shiftwork and cognitive impairment as well as any physiological pathways that underlie the mechanism.”

Previous research has established that shift work has significant health impacts.