Night work is a risk for mums
WOMEN who work night shifts are at greater risk of a miscarriage than those doing regular hours, a study claims.
It adds that women who work varying shifts are more likely to take longer to conceive. Researchers assessed the impact of shift work on the reproductive outcomes of 119,345 women.
Almost a third of those who worked only at night had an increased rate of miscarriage, while 22 per cent who worked variable shifts suffered menstrual disruption, which can cause fertility problems.
Shift workers had an 80 per cent increased rate of prolonged inability to conceive, according to researchers at Southampton’s Princess Anne hospital.
Dr Linden Stocker, who co-led the study, said: “It provides strong initial evidence that women trying to conceive would benefit from assessing their work patterns.”