New Delhi: A new study suggests that women working night shifts face a significantly higher risk of developing moderate to severe asthma compared to those working regular daytime hours. Interestingly, this link was not observed in men, whose asthma risk remained largely unchanged regardless of their work schedule.
The research, published in “ERJ Open Research“, found no such correlation in men, whose asthma risk remained stable regardless of work hours.
The research, which analyzed data from over 270,000 employed individuals, revealed that approximately 5.3% had asthma, with 1.9% experiencing moderate to severe forms of the condition—requiring both preventer inhalers and additional treatments such as oral steroids.
Notably, women who consistently worked overnight schedules were found to be about 50% more likely to suffer from more severe asthma symptoms than women who only worked during the day. Among postmenopausal women not using hormone replacement therapy (HRT), the risk was nearly doubled.
The researchers believe the body clock disruption caused by shift work may be a contributing factor, potentially affecting hormone levels. Since higher levels of testosterone have been shown to protect against asthma, lower testosterone in women might explain the gender disparity. It’s also possible that men and women tend to engage in different kinds of shift-based occupations, which could influence the risk differently.
While previous studies have suggested a general link between shift work and asthma, this is the first major research to focus on the differences between men and women in this context. Further studies are planned to explore whether sex hormones play a deeper role in this association.