Publication:

Impact of night shift work on sleep quality and dietary pattern: a study among IT professionals in Puducherry, India

Background Night shift work is prevalent in various industries such as healthcare, manufacturing, emergency services, and call centres, especially in regions with 24-hour operations. Health issues often arise due to the disruption of circadian rhythms that shift workers endure. The main objective of the study to assess the prevalence of poor sleep quality among IT professionals, to assess the dietary pattern among IT professionals and to assess the association between dietary pattern and sleep quality among night shift IT professionals.

Methods It is a quantitative, cross-sectional study conducted among 163 IT professional in a Puducherry India. Simple random sampling technique was used for selection of participants.

Results The present study reveals that all 163 participants (100%) have a PSQI score of 5 or greater, indicating "Poor sleep quality." No participants were classified as having "Good sleep quality," highlighting the prevalence of poor sleep quality in this group. This relationship is statistically significant (p=0.015), suggesting that the observed correlation is unlikely due to chance.

Conclusions The study concludes that night shift work among IT professionals in Puducherry, India, has a significant adverse impact on sleep quality, with all participants exhibiting poor sleep quality as indicated by a PSQI score of 5 or greater. The disruption of natural circadian rhythms due to irregular working hours is a primary contributor to deteriorating sleep patterns.