AJP - Regulatory, Integrative and Comparative Physiology, Vol 251, Issue 3 636-R638, Copyright © 1986 by American Physiological Society
Circadian principles and design of rotating shift work schedules
F. W. Turek
Circadian rhythms may be disrupted when shift workers rotate from one work
schedule to another. It has been suggested that in order to minimize the
time needed to readjust circadian rhythms to a new work schedule the work
time of shift workers should be rotated in a delaying rather than an
advancing direction. However, delaying or advancing the work time does not
imply that the sleep-wake cycle is also shifted in a similar manner.
Indeed, after a complete rotation between the day, evening, and night
shifts the sleep time will be advanced once, delayed once, and not shifted
once, regardless of whether the workers are on a delaying or an advancing
work rotation schedule. Thus circadian rhythms are likely to be perturbed
in a similar manner whether the work schedule is rotated in a delaying or
an advancing direction.
