Okay. The ACS Is ready to call night shift work a carcinogen,
but they won't say squat about BCPs, HRT, and toxins in personal
care products????? I'm befuddled.
International Agency Plans to Call Night Work a
Probable Carcinogen
The International Agency for Research on Cancer plans to
categorize overnight shift work as a probable carcinogen,
according to the Associated Press.
The AP says the agency will make the change in December, and the
American Cancer Society is likely to follow suit. Until now, the
ACS has considered the association between cancer and night work
to be "uncertain, controversial or unproven."
Several epidemiologic studies, done mostly on nurses and flight
crews, have shown a link between night work and cancer of the
breast and prostate, the AP notes. Another analysis, prepared by
the IARC, will be published in the December issue of Lancet
Oncology.
In theory, sleep loss and circadian disruptions resulting from
night work could contribute to cancer risk. Being exposed to
light at night could disrupt production of melatonin, a hormone
that can limit tumor growth.
