Rotating night shift work, gestational diabetes and risk of type 2 diabetes among US nurses

Occupational and Environmental Medicine 2026 Open access

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Authors: Isha Agarwal, Cara L. Frankenfeld, Eva S. Schernhammer, Susanne Strohmaier, Abby F. Fleisch, Janet W. Rich-Edwards, Deirdre K Tobias
DOI: 10.1136/oemed-2025-110594
Cited by: 1
References: 28

Abstract

OBJECTIVES: We sought to evaluate whether rotating night shift work increases the risk of type 2 diabetes, particularly among women with a history of gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM). METHODS: We included 50 122 Nurses' Health Study II participants who were parous at baseline in 1989 or at any time during follow-up through 2019. Using multivariable-adjusted Cox proportional hazards models, we estimated the HRs and 95% CIs for the associations between cumulative years of rotating night shift work and incident type 2 diabetes, overall, and by history of GDM. RESULTS: Compared with participants who never engaged in rotating night shift work, we observed a graded increase in the risk of type 2 diabetes with cumulative years of rotating night shift work: HR (95% CI) 1.14 (1.04 to 1.24) for 10 years (p-linear trend

Fields of Study & Subjects

Sleep and Work-Related Fatigue Circadian rhythm and melatonin Gestational Diabetes Research and Management

Publication details

Journal / source
Occupational and Environmental Medicine
Publisher
BMJ
Volume
83
Issue
1
Pages
16–22
Publication date
1 January 2026
Language
EN