{"id":9845,"date":"2025-12-05T13:51:08","date_gmt":"2025-12-05T12:51:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lifecheck.nl\/?p=9845"},"modified":"2025-12-05T13:52:16","modified_gmt":"2025-12-05T12:52:16","slug":"staying-healthy-during-your-nightshift","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lifecheck.nl\/en\/blogs\/staying-healthy-during-your-nightshift\/","title":{"rendered":"Staying healthy during your nightshift"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Maybe you\u2019ve noticed that you get tired more quickly, crave snacks more often, or struggle to sleep well at home. Fortunately, with a few smart adjustments you can do a lot to stay feeling fit \u2014 and LifeCheck is here to support you if you need help.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>What happens in your body during a night shift?<\/strong><br>Your body follows a biological clock that determines when you\u2019re active and when you should rest. At night, your body switches into \u201csleep mode\u201d: your body temperature drops, your digestion slows down, and the sleep hormone melatonin increases. When you\u2019re working instead of resting, that system gets disrupted.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This can lead to short-term effects such as:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Poor sleep<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Fatigue<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Digestive issues<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>And in the long term:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Weight gain<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Diabetes<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Cardiovascular disease<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Chronic sleep problems<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Nutrition tips for night shifts<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Good meal planning helps your body adjust to working at night. Here are some practical tips:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Plan your meals well<br>Take a quiet moment to look at your schedule and plan your meals. Try to stick to three main meals within 24 hours, even during night shifts.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Choose foods that support your body<br>Go for: <\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Proteins (e.g., chicken, eggs, legumes)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Slow carbohydrates (whole grains, oatmeal)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Healthy fats (avocado, oily fish)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Avoid greasy snacks or sugary treats. Your digestion is less active at night, so lighter, nutritious meals are better.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ol start=\"3\" class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Bring healthy snacks with you<br>Think of veggie snacks, a boiled egg, fruit, unsalted nuts or a small bowl of yogurt. This helps prevent last-minute trips to the vending machine.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>What else you can do during your night shift<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-media-text is-stacked-on-mobile\"><figure class=\"wp-block-media-text__media\"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"512\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/lifecheck.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/charloin__a_night_shift_worker_choosing_a_bottle_of_water_or__285e5d9b-b772-4afc-a47f-9596a88dee5e_0-512x1024.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-8341 size-full\" srcset=\"https:\/\/lifecheck.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/charloin__a_night_shift_worker_choosing_a_bottle_of_water_or__285e5d9b-b772-4afc-a47f-9596a88dee5e_0-512x1024.png 512w, https:\/\/lifecheck.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/charloin__a_night_shift_worker_choosing_a_bottle_of_water_or__285e5d9b-b772-4afc-a47f-9596a88dee5e_0-150x300.png 150w, https:\/\/lifecheck.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/charloin__a_night_shift_worker_choosing_a_bottle_of_water_or__285e5d9b-b772-4afc-a47f-9596a88dee5e_0.png 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 512px) 100vw, 512px\" \/><\/figure><div class=\"wp-block-media-text__content\">\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Limit caffeine<\/strong><br>Drink coffee only at the beginning of your shift, preferably no more than two cups. Having caffeine too late at night makes it harder to fall asleep afterwards.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Move during your breaks<\/strong><br>Do you have a sedentary job? Take a short walk or do some stretching exercises. It helps you stay alert and supports better sleep later on.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Drink enough water<\/strong><br>Water (or herbal tea) keeps you hydrated and helps regulate your energy levels and digestion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Go to bed as soon as possible after your shift<\/strong><br>Avoid bright daylight on your way home (wearing sunglasses can help) and go straight to sleep. The longer you wait, the harder it becomes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Get daylight after waking up<\/strong><br>Step outside for a moment once you wake up. Daylight helps your biological clock readjust to your rhythm.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Need help? LifeCheck is here for you<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Do you find it difficult to eat well during your night shifts? Or are you experiencing issues such as fatigue, poor sleep or digestive problems? The dietitians at LifeCheck are happy to think along with you. They\u2019ll help you with a personalised nutrition plan that fits your work schedule.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>Easily schedule a free session through the LifeCheck portal<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-buttons is-layout-flex wp-block-buttons-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-button\"><a class=\"wp-block-button__link wp-element-button\" href=\"https:\/\/startjouw.lifecheck.nl\/home\/appointment-intro?type=nutrition\">Scedule a session<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Maybe you\u2019ve noticed that you get tired more quickly, crave snacks more often, or struggle to sleep well at home. Fortunately, with a few smart adjustments you can do a lot to stay feeling fit \u2014 and LifeCheck is here to support you if you need help. What happens in your body during a night [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":8317,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[22],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-9845","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-werknemer"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lifecheck.nl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9845","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lifecheck.nl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lifecheck.nl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lifecheck.nl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lifecheck.nl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9845"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/lifecheck.nl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9845\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9849,"href":"https:\/\/lifecheck.nl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9845\/revisions\/9849"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lifecheck.nl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/8317"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lifecheck.nl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9845"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lifecheck.nl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9845"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lifecheck.nl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9845"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}