Wellness tech firm Timeshifter has launched a new circadian app for shift workers, allowing them to form and maintain healthier lifestyles.

When a shift worker imports their schedule and enters their sleep pattern, chronotype, and personal preferences, the app will provide highly personalised advice to tackle the underlying problem of circadian and sleep disruption.

By providing the personalised advice, Timeshifter will – according to co-founder and CEO Mickey Beyer-Clausen – help shift workers increase their "safety and productivity" while improving their quality of life.

This is because ​​Timeshifter will not replace existing shift work scheduling solutions already in place – instead, the app is a tool intended to be used to accommodate existing work schedules.

Timeshifter has previously used its circadian technology to create one of the most-downloaded jetlag apps.

“Our plan has always been to move beyond jetlag to solve other large, previously unsolved circadian-based problems”, said Beyer-Clausen

“With almost 700 million people working shifts and struggling with irregular work schedules, we can’t continue to ignore the many negative consequences shift work causes.”

It is estimated that around 20 per cent of the global labor force are shift workers, whose work schedule requires them to work outside of typical daylight hours and can also require shifts that rotate through different hours throughout the week.

Night shift work is associated with an increased risk of accidents and injuries and over time, shift workers also have an increased risk of chronic diseases such as diabetes, heart disease, depression, and certain cancers.

The circadian clock controls almost every biological system in human bodies — from sleep-wake cycle and mood and performance patterns to metabolic, immune, and reproductive systems.