You work night shift! You don’t have time to cook.
Sometimes you skip meals, eat irregularly, or grab the nearest food option, which is most likely less than nutritious. I know how it is, I worked night shift for twelve years: 7P to 7A!
I learned right away that working nights meant I had to pay closer attention to my body and my health.
Studies show that shift workers share a higher risk for heart disease and weight gain because of food choices and meal timing.
But studies also show that snacking behaviors between day shift and night shift workers is substantially different. The data suggests that the foods available for snacking at night are generally higher in sugar, fat, and energy than those available during the day. The lack of healthy choices and the habits of your fellow employees play a huge role regarding what you reach for at night when you feel hungry.
Nurses aren’t always great at taking their own advice. Too many times we take our own health-promoting knowledge and forget to translate it to ourselves in terms of proper nutrition. Well, I’m going to help you make it easy to do what you’re telling your patients to do.
You need simple, go-to snacks that are healthy and sustainable to get you through until morning.
The first step is understanding why it’s important to nourish your body when working nights.
Why Eat Healthy Foods
A systematic review of 12 studies comparing day and night shift workers showed there were no differences in energy intake.(1) These findings suggest that food choice and meal timing, rather than the amount of calories consumed, are the main contributors to increased cardiovascular risk and weight gain in shift workers.
This is why.
Here’s what happens when you sleep at night:
- your body is fasting
- it releases limited amounts of stored glucose and insulin
- these limited amounts are all that are needed to run your central nervous system because your muscles aren’t moving (duh!) (2)
Here’s what happens when you eat at night:
- your body is programmed to be asleep
- you eat a meal
- your body generates an exaggerated lipid and glucose response (when compared with the same meal if eaten during the day.)(2)
Eating at night disrupts your entire metabolic climate. It makes your glucose and lipids surge, leaving you at a higher risk for weight gain, diabetes, and heart disease.
The best way to combat this assault is with
a healthy diet and optimal meal timing.
What to Eat
Planning ahead is key!
It’s always best to pack your own dinner and healthy snacks. Fruit and veggies are perfect snacks, but they can’t always hold you at 2am.
Here are some easy, portable snacks and light meals that I personally LOVE. You can order them now and keep them on hand to take to work with you.
Late July is an amazing company and they make quality products. These Multigrain Tortilla Chips hit the spot every single time! They are organic, non-GMO, gluten-free, kosher and vegan and made in a facility that does not process peanuts. Best of all they are yummy.
My favorite thing to pair with Late July Tortilla chips is Lilly’s Hummus. I recommend the variety pack because the roasted garlic is amazing with baby carrots. This hummus is hand-made in small batches and is vegan, non-GMO and made with organic chickpeas.
If crackers—with hummus—is more your thing, order Mary’s Gone Crackers. Try the 3 flavor variety bundle which includes one each: Herb, Original, Jalapeno (5.5-6.5 Ounces).
Annie’s Snack Mix is satisfying. This bunny mix contains crackers, pretzels, breadsticks and bunny shaped crackers. It is baked with real organic cheese and organic wheat flour. Annie’s has a great line of delicious, healthy snacks.
Amy’s Kitchen makes a line of organic, vegetarian products that I’ve been enjoying for decades. The company was started in 1987 by Andy and Rachel Berliner, who named it after their newborn daughter! I love their soups and chili. The Low Sodium Organic Chili is one of my favorites and heats up easily for a light midnight meal on night shift.
Back to Nature Cashew Almond Pistachio Mix is nothing short of WOW! Their nuts are roasted with sea-salt and without hydrogenated oils or high fructose corn syrup. A handful of these at 3am is the perfect munch to get you through the night. Back to Nature has an amazing line of cookies too. I love love love the Chocolate Chunk Cookies! To. Die. For. 
As you probably noticed, I prefer organic products with simple ingredients. I worked at a health food store before college and learned so much about organic options and keeping food selection simple.
When to Eat
Experts recommend that night shift workers time their meals and snacks. Eat your largest meal of the night sometime before 11pm if possible. The earlier the better.
The reason for this is to keep the glucose and insulin surges from happening during the time of the night when your body would be in a deep sleep state.
Later in the night you can consume a smaller meal and healthy snacks that won’t cause spikes in your glucose and insulin levels.
Ideally your meals and snacks should be timed so that you’re eating the heaviest foods and largest portions first and moving on to lighter foods and smaller portions as the night goes on and the morning approaches.
It’s not always possible to do this on night shift, but if you’re struggling with fluctuating energy levels throughout the night, you might want to give timed eating a try.
And I’m so thrilled I could share all this with you.
Be sure to check out 10 Healthy Eating Tips for Night Shift Nurses.
Please leave a comment and share your favorite, healthy snacks for working night shift.
Cheers!
References
1. Bonham M.P., Bonnell E.K., Huggins C.E. Energy intake of shift workers compared to fixed day workers: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Chronobiol. Int. 2016;33:1086–1100. doi: 10.1080/07420528.2016.1192188.
2. Lowden A., Moreno C., Holmbäck U., Lennernäs M., Tucker P. Eating and shift work—Effects on habits, metabolism, and performance. Scand. J. Work Environ. Health. 2010;36:150–162. doi: 10.5271/sjweh.2898.
