Plenty of research by plenty of smart people all agree – a continued schedule of rotating night shift work disrupts circadian rhythms and may have a wide range of physiologic, psychological and social effect on shift workers.

But the reality is, unfortunately, that shift work is absolutely necessary in the 24/7 nursing industry, and as many as 35% of RNs regularly work it.  If you’re on nights, it’s important to employ strategies to ensure you’re staying as healthy as possible, and doing your part to prevent exacerbating such problems.

Many nurses cite unwelcome weight gain when working the night shift, for the obvious reasons:

• At 3 AM, the cafeteria is not open to build a decent salad;
• Sugary foods are used throughout the night as a stimulus to stay awake;
• The vending machine carries nothing but high calorie, high-fat, high sugar choices;
• Boredom!

So what to do?  If working the night shift finds you faced with Chinese delivery, midnight calzones and an abundance of leftover holiday cookies, here’s a few ideas to help stay balanced and trim:

Eat smaller meals, more often
Rather than loading up on a big meal once during the night, eat a nutritious snack every three hours.  By eating every three hours, you’re creating an environment in your body whereby your blood sugars do not elevate and drop as drastically as when you eat fewer, bigger meals.  Without getting bored by the science behind it, basically your body becomes more efficient this way and utilizes the food for energy throughout the night and minimizes storage of fat. But don’t overdo it:  200 calories is about right per meal.  Keeping each meal small enhances nutrient absorption and avoids gains in bodyfat.

Stick with Protein, slow digesting carbs and good fats
But what to eat?  Aim for proteins and slow-digesting carbs, with minimal 'bad' fats.  With even a little planning, you can prepare yourself for everything you’ll need throughout the night.  Great snacks that will provide energy and keep you trim include fruit, oatmeal, shrimp (frozen shrimp will defrost), and some energy bars like Kashi®.  If you’re stuck with only the vending machine, go for the peanuts.  Yes, they’re high in fat, but only the good kind, and there’s no sugar, like every other item in the machine. 

Avoid simple sugars
Simple sugars – like what you find in candy bars and sodas – create a state in your body that encourages fat storage and more eating!  Even if your candy says ‘Zero Fat!’, don’t be fooled.  When you’re working the night shift, your body will convert the excess sugars and store them as fat.  Plus, you’ll spike your insulin levels and only end up feeling hungrier again faster.

No caffeine
The caffeine you drink in colas or coffee will only help to keep you up when you get home.  Instead, go with seltzer, water or herbal tea.  If you eat every three hours as described above, you won’t need the caffeine.  You’ll have sustained energy throughout the night.

Get moving – a little bit
Finally, keep your metabolism going.  This will happen anyway by way of phasing your eating every few hours, but a brisk walk up and down a flight of stairs every 2 hours (time and patient duties permitting, of course), will raise your heart rate slightly and keep your body in a calorie-burning state all night long.