If your routine is not same as others do like waking up in the morning and trying to finish of your working well in time, it implies you are working in a shift. It is utmost important to have healthy diet for night shift workers that help them to keep fit, hale and hearty and in physical, mental, emotional well-being.

It can be evening shifts, night shifts or morning shifts and often people do the double shift too. As per The “Centers for Disease Control and Prevention”’ defines: anything that materializes and works at the other time than the “normal daylight hours” of 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. is referred as a shift time for the workers. If in case, the working time is odd, disturbed or changes frequently then it would not be so easy to continue the healthy regime.

Rather you would turn inflexible, unhealthy, irritated and frustrated very often. It has an impact on your sleep schedule, eating schedule, and skip meals, indulging more in unhealthy food stuffs, eat irregularly, exercise habits etc. All this disturbs the natural internal clock of the human being that further upsets the hormones and brain chemicals that regulates the mood swing, appetite and nervous and digestive system, that regulates the mood swing, appetite and nervous and digestive system.

While making a schedule emphasis to get sound and deep sleep for about 7-8 hours, add roughage and fiber and wholesome foods. One must add some physical activity in daily routine. This will help in improving your overall health while working during shift.

It has been surveyed people who work more at shift are more prone to constipation, migraine, spondylitis, depression, restlessness, obesity, diabetes, insomnia, fatigue, sleep apnea, accidents, ulcers, and certain sorts of cancer, weight gain and heart diseases, hypercholesterolemia, hypertension, anxiety, high risk of strokes.
Those who are working and especially the shift workers consume tea, coffee mostly from the vending machines or take away restaurants that are nearby. It may perhaps inflict chaos on the fitness goals of an individual. One of the priority and most vital step is healthy diet for night shift workers. To reduce your dependence on vending machines and fast food, bring your own healthy drinks and food to work.

Guidelines and certain recommendations about healthy diet for night shift workers:-

Eat protein more: shift workers face tremendous problems as they deal with many problems, and the main problem includes drowsiness, restlessness, fatigue due to which struggle a lot with themselves to keep calm. Therefore, it is important to choose from the healthy stuffs for mid night munching. Incorporation of protein foods includes lean meat, tuna, eggs, cottage cheese, peanut butter, turkey, tofu, almond milk; soy milk helps in raising the levels alertness and boosting the focus.

Lower down the carbs intake: It would be great if the night shift workers and people who change shifts very frequently avoid high carb diet or the junk foods or the fried foods. It includes potatoes, pasta, macaroni, burger, pizza, breads, rice, etc. It also included heavy and fired food stuff like samosa, kachori, chips etc. The higher the carb content in the food the higher will be the satiety value, that leads to relaxing and sedative effect on the body. Thus enhances laziness and drowsiness.

Avoid refined sugars: As we all are aware that sugar is not good for health. As per the researchers, if people indulging in night shift eat more sweets or any other sugar product are more prone to diabetes, hypercholesterolemia, hyperlipidemia, obesity and certain sort of cancer. Thereof, it’s a good option to control down the intake of sugar based drinks.

Avoid sugary, aerated and carbonated beverages, soda and alcohol consumption: Similarly, as sugars are not a healthy options, consumption of sugary, aerated and carbonated drinks, soda and alcohol is an unhealthy choice for being a well-being or hale and hearty. Night shift workers or the shift workers mostly combat with many health issues. They often complaint of laziness, drowsiness, restlessness and sleeplessness because of which they either get addicted to the unhealthy options of food available in the market or try to quench their emotions with them.
Avoid caffeine: Likewise, the consumption of sugars, alcohol, carbonated drink etc. is not the healthy practices. In the same way, adding caffeine in your routine is not good either. Though, caffeine has its accelerating outcome on human’s body. It helps in relaxing the body and awakening them when the body is tired and fast asleep.

Don’t use food to surge your needs: Often the shift workers or the night shift workers gets through boredom, tiredness and lethargy to suppress it they end up eating the food that provides them an immense pleasure such as chocolates, energy bars etc. It is again not a healthy diet for night shift workers.

Handout advises for Shift Workers:
It is necessary to change the routine, dietary habits as per the working hours. It is the only key to lead a healthy life. Include the following tips to be fit. These are:

• Add raw fruits and vegetables.
• Add low fat dairy products.
• Plan exercises at-least four times a week.
• Schedule your sleep time rightly for 7-8 hours a day.
• Spend some time with nature during day.
• Go for healthy options. (During a week off, try to buy fruits and salad material. Wash cut and store in zip
• pouches i.e. an easy to carry pouches).
• Prepare two healthy tiffin’s at home, one as a main meal and another as a snack.
• Eat small, frequent meals.
• Try to eat well in time. (Fix your time for the meals).
• Don’t eat in a hap-hazard way. (Give time to eat).
• Drink plenty of fluids including water.

Try to plan, evaluate, implement and check execution of your day and step forward towards healthier lifestyle. It is rightly stated healthy regime and healthy diet for night shift workers always walk hand in hand in order to get maximum health benefits.

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