I've been following the Catlin Arctic survey blog for updates on the expedition to the Arctic to measure the thickness of the sea ice. As well as the environmental perspective there are a number of aspects of the expedition which are of interest to occupational hygienists. Their blog and website includes information on dealing with exposure to cold including the clothing they are using and their experience of living in a cold environment.
There was an interesting post on their blog today written by the expedition's sleep analyst, Mary Morrell. This might seem like a rather strange job, but lack of sleep and disturbed sleep patterns can lead to ill health. To quote from the blog post
"Insufficient sleep (usually thought of as less than 7 hours per night) causes tiredness and fatigue. Alertness is reduced and thought processes slow down. In particular, sleep deprivation leads to slower reaction times."
In the workplace this is relevant for shift workers and personnel working unusual shift patterns and the impact on their health isn't usually considered during workplace risk assessments. So the experience gained during the expedition could have some lessons for us and it will be worth keeping an eye on the blog for any further posts on this topic.
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