A study conducted by scientists from Washington University in St. Louis revealed that lack of sleep and working night shifts increases the risk of developing osteoarthritis, one of the most common joint diseases.
Scientists analyzed data from nearly 500,000 participants in the UK Biobank project and found that people who sleep less than six hours a night or regularly complain of difficulty falling asleep and frequent awakenings are 20-40% more likely to develop osteoarthritis in the hip or knee compared to those who sleep around seven hours a night.
An additional risk was also found among night shift workers, who were 24% more likely to develop osteoarthritis in the knee and 28% more likely to undergo knee replacement surgery. These associations persisted even after taking into account body weight, age, and other health factors.
What most caught the researchers' attention was that the increased risk was observed even in people who did not suffer from chronic joint pain at the beginning of the study.
The researchers believe that sleep disturbances and circadian rhythm imbalances may increase inflammation in the body, hinder tissue repair, and increase pain sensitivity.
Russian physician Marat Farakhov had previously indicated that working irregular hours or working late at night could cause a person to suffer strokes or heart attacks.
