How To Have A Balanced Sleep-Wake Cycle If You Work Overnight Shifts

After reflecting on the anniversary of the pandemic, it's clear that feelings of both grief and gratitude are ever-present themes. Grief for the lives and experiences lost, and overdue gratitude for the essential workers who have helped to heal, feed, and protect the population. And while essential workers are getting the recognition they deserve this year, there is one challenging aspect to their jobs that can often be overlooked: working overnight shifts.

Regardless of our jobs or our sleep schedules, the body will always work on a light-dark cycle, functional medicine doctor Amy Shah, M.D., tells mbg. That 24-hour body clock, or circadian rhythm, is mainly influenced by temperature and light. 

"Someone who's working night shifts will still benefit from getting daylight during the daylight hours, and darkness at night," Shah says. 

Eating a healthy, balanced meal is much easier said than done late at night. "Cravings and 'munchies' happen more frequently from my experience [with night shifts]," says Eva Selhub, M.D., internal medicine doctor and author of Resilience for Dummies. "And there is a tendency to try to stay awake by eating more carbs, which usually only helps temporarily."

In the nighttime hours, it's best to stick to smaller, more balanced meals that are not going to spike blood sugar levels and will be easy to digest.

If you get hungry during the night shift, Selhub recommends eating the same type of nutrients (healthy fats and proteins, and a small portion of grains). Try to eat at the end of the shift, if possible, she adds. This keeps mealtime closer to daylight hours and gives you time to digest before sleeping.

Based on her own experience working night shifts, holistic psychiatrist Ellen Vora, M.D., advises overnight workers to do whatever they can to convince their bodies that it's nighttime when they return home from work. 

If possible, it's important to transition to a standard light-dark cycle when you have time off of work, Shah says. Of course, that doesn't mean you work a 12-hour shift, then come home and stay awake for another 12 hours.