Postprandial hormone and metabolic responses amongst shift workers in Antarctica

• Main Authors: J Lund, J Arendt, S M Hampton, J English, L M Morgan
• Other Authors: The Pennsylvania State University CiteSeerX Archives
• Format: Text
• Language: English
• Published: 2001
• Subjects: Antarctic; Antarc*; Antarctica; British Antarctic Survey
• Online Access: http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/summary?doi=10.1.1.580.2957; http://joe.endocrinology-journals.org/content/171/3/557.full.pdf

The circadian rhythms of many night-shift workers are maladapted to their imposed behavioural schedule, and this factor may be implicated in the increased occurrence of cardiovascular disease (CVD) reported in shift workers. One way in which CVD risk could be mediated is through inappropriate hormonal and metabolic responses to meals. This study investigated the responses to standard meals at different circadian times in a group of night-shift workers on a British Antarctic Survey station at Halley Bay (75 S) in Antarctica. Twelve healthy subjects (ten men and two women) were recruited. Their postprandial hormone and meta-bolic responses to an identical mixed test meal of 3330 kJ were measured on three occasions: (i) during daytime on a