Dan Birchall

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Posted by Dan on Nov 30, '07 3:19 AM for everyone

In the immortal words of the late, great Warren Zevon, "Life'll kill ya."

But this time, it's personal. As has just been widely reported in the media, the World Health Organization's cancer research organization is about to add working night shifts to its list of probable carcinogens. Why? Because working at night switches the body's exposure to light and darkness, disrupting the natural circadian rhythms, and interfering with natural production of the hormone Melatonin, which can suppress development of tumors.

Of course, I work nights a lot.

This wouldn't be such a concern, except that the place I work nights restricts my hours because letting me work more hours would lead to them being required (by state law) to offer me a health insurance plan.

So... work that probably causes cancer, combined with an employer determined to not offer health insurance. Great, huh?

Interestingly, the same thing can happen with Melatonin (though perhaps to a lesser extent) when people travel long distances across several time zones. The body again gets confused about what time it is, and so on, and so forth.

Of course, I travel long distances a lot, when I'm not working nights.

So I guess I'll have to find some way of earning a living in one place, by the light of day...

Tags: health, travel, work

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7 CommentsChronological Reverse Threaded

ryion wrote on Nov 30, '07

Dan dont get scared. God has the best plans for you.

mumd wrote on Nov 30, '07

Have patience and let God take control of your physical and Spiritual needs.

barefootmeg wrote on Nov 30, '07

i'd encourage you to trust in God, but it looks like the Africans beat me to it. ;-)

so my advice will be to eat more carrots. they may not help, but at least you'll go into that dark night with good night vision.

jprovo wrote on Nov 30, '07

As a counterbalance, and to remind you we all die anyway so wisdom from the Butthole Surfers:

“Well son, the funny thing about regret is it’s better to regret something
you have done than to regret something you haven’t done.
And by the way, if you see your mom this weekend, be sure and tell her
SATAN, SATAN, SATAN!!!”

royalblu22 wrote on Dec 1, '07, edited on Dec 1, '07

"So I guess I'll have to find some way of earning a living in one place, by the light of day..."

Nah!!!!

grandmom wrote on Dec 1, '07

Keep at optimistic, loving attitude. Be very giving. I think this in itself can fend off a lot of cancers. Continue to put others before yourself, when you can. You'll be healthier. Also, a day job in a country where your income and expenses are in the same exchange (not dollar vs pound) is probably good for one's health. Incidentally, I read that living in high altitudes (e.g., Denver)all the time causes more skin cancer (1 mile closer to the sun!). Lastly, if you should die, just remember the single most important factor in how many people come to your funeral is the weather!