On Waking to Pee and Other Issues

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circadian-rhythm

There’s a number of reasons why someone might regularly have sleep disturbed by a full bladder. But for shift workers, chances are high that the cause is circadian disruption.

How to Stop Waking to Pee | HealthShift

 

More Mistakes

Radiologists working late hours overnight make “significantly” more errors than their daytime-shift counterparts, according to a new analysis.

The authors noted that work load was “well within” ACGME guidance to combat fatigue and burnout, suggesting that misaligned sleep schedules may be contributing to the poor performance.

Is there something inherently different about working at night?

Spoiler alert: Yes there is.

Radiologists make significantly more mistakes on the night shift than their daytime counterparts | Radiology Business

 

Too Tired to Mingle

If you’ve been reading these newsletters for some time, you know that strong relationships are important to our health and longevity – possibly as important as exercise. But sacrificing sleep in order to socialize is not a good trade-off, as a new study further demonstrates.

The results, which have now been published in the scientific journal PNAS, show a clear association between sleepiness and social activity. Higher levels of sleepiness could be linked to a reduction in the number of social activities and the amount of time one engaged in social activity, with the most significant effects seen on days off and during the evenings.

And, as with most things, time of day matters.

Social activity generally promotes good sleep. The study shows that social activity in the afternoon may be linked to increased sleepiness after the social engagement as well as longer duration of sleep that night. And at the same time, the study shows that a higher level of social activity in the evening was linked to reduced sleepiness and a shorter duration of sleep (20 to 30 minutes less if respondents were active for more than 6 hours).

Of course the participants were not night shift workers, so you can substitute with your definition of “afternoon” and “evening”. In other words, the post night shift beer with colleagues may not be a good idea.

Sleepiness Can Have a Negative Impact on Your Social Life | Neuroscience News

 

Why are some people so opposed to masks?

Healthcare workers, who depend on masks for their health and safety, are at a loss over the political divide created by mandatory mask policies.

Psychologist Dan Ariely provides some insight:

This means that if you belong to a community where the norm of mask-wearing hasn’t been established, you’re unlikely to buck the trend by wearing one yourself. But if the norm shifts and mask-wearing becomes expected, most people will change their behavior, regardless of the principled reasons they once gave for not wearing a mask.

Ask Ariely: On Philanthropic Freebies, Missing Masks, and Behavioral Biases | Dan Ariely

 

Rethinking Home Ownership

If you’re in the wealth accumulation phase of your life, I think buying a home is a terrible decision (in most cases).

Historically, homeownership is a great place to store wealth as it forces buyers to save and home values keep up with inflation. But don’t justify it as a moneymaker.

I’ve done the numbers using a wonderful calculator by The New York Times. Compare historical housing appreciation (~5%/year, plus maintenance and other costs) to other investments (equities appreciate ~8%/year).

Why buying a house is a bad idea | the Hustle

See also: The Hidden Costs of Owning a Home | Investopedia

 

Stay healthy-

Jason Glenn

P.S. If you enjoyed this newsletter and know a fellow shift worker who would enjoy it, consider forwarding it to them.

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Thrive, No Matter What Your Schedule Looks Like

HealthShift is a weekly email offering the best physical, mental, and financial health resources for shift workers.

No Spam. No Fluff. No Charge. Unsubscribe anytime.