Working in Uncomfortable Temperatures Linked to Higher Risk of T2D

Working in uncomfortable temperatures is associated with an increased risk of type 2 diabetes (T2D), according to a study published in Diabetes Research and Clinical Practice.

Researchers assessed 103,215 nondiabetic participants in the UK Biobank cohort who all answered questions regarding workplace temperature to assess the interaction effects of working environment temperature and T2D-related genetic risk scores (GRS) on the occurrence of T2D.

Over 1,355,200.6 person-years of follow-up, 2436 participants were documented as having been diagnosed with T2D. Compared with the comfortable group, participants working in uncomfortable environmental temperatures had a greater risk of T2D (hazard ratio [HR], 1.27; 95% CI, 1.04-1.55 for cold; HR, 1.32; 95% CI, 1.17-1.48 for hot; HR, 1.51; 95% CI, 1.38-1.65 for alternate). Similarly, the researchers noted that individuals exposed to different levels of GRS in alternating hot and cold work environments had a higher risk of developing T2D.

“This study found that working in single noncomfortable environmental temperatures was associated with a greater risk of T2D occurrence, and exposure to alternating environmental temperatures had the highest risk of range and severity,” the researchers concluded.