Shift work for mothers associated with reduced fetal growth and longer pregnancies

New search published in The physiology journal indicates that an exposure to shift work in mothers can result in reduced fetal growth and longer pregnancies, even when shift work is performed only early in pregnancy.

Shift work interferes with normal sleep patterns, meal times, and exposure to light. Shift workers have an increased risk of type 2 diabetes and obesity, but effects on metabolism have not been studied in pregnant women. Although shiftwork has been badociated with an adverse outcome of pregnancy, until now, mechanisms have not been understood. Importantly, it was not known when women should stop shift work to prevent adverse effects on their pregnancy. Researchers found that shift work could alter glucose tolerance in mothers during early pregnancy, which meant that mothers had lower glycemic control. They demonstrated that shift work during pregnancy can disrupt the mother's circadian rhythms or her biological clock and metabolism. These findings could inform public policies and workplace practices regarding shift work during pregnancy in women.

Previous studies have shown that sleep disorders in rodents can affect the outcome of pregnancy. This study examines the effects on sheep as they are an excellent animal model for human pregnancy. The study, conducted by the University of Adelaide and the South Australian Institute for Medical and Health Research, simulated the patterns of pbadage of groups of sheep, the light being on during the day and the food provided every morning, or a rotation between day and night during each week. The researchers measured maternal circadian rhythms and blood glucose control at the beginning and end of pregnancy, and weighed all the lambs at birth.

Exposure to a rotating shift work model altered glucose tolerance in early gestational sheep, as well as in non-pregnant adults. Reduced fetal growth was observed in pregnancies with one fetus and longer in mothers with twins. Importantly, this was the case even when mothers stopped simulated shift work after the first third of pregnancy. This suggests that exposure to alternating work schedules night and day, even if it is only in early pregnancy, may have an adverse effect on the metabolic outcomes and consequences of pregnancy in the mother.

Researchers now hope to identify shifts that do not interfere with the mother's metabolism or pregnancy outcomes. The limitation of this research is that most human pregnancies are singletons, but in this study, there was a similar number of twins and singletons, due to the maximum fertility of the sheep around the equinox at the time of their mating. This reduced the researcher's ability to compare the effects of different shift work durations on pregnancy outcomes.

Dr. Kathy Gatford, lead author of the study, commented on the findings:

"The effects of shift work on pregnancy are not well understood. We found that exposure to rotating shifts at night and day, even if it was only at the beginning of pregnancy, altered the metabolic outcomes and consequences of pregnancy in the mother. We are currently badessing whether mothers' shift work affects the health of their children by examining the circadian rhythms, cardiometabolic health, and body composition of offspring in this study. & # 39;

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