Industrial activities

Causes of increased propension to sleepiness in industrial employees can be roughly divided into two classes. The first group of causes is common to all production activities, and includes: shift and night work, work-related stress, physical and mental fatigue, and the use of illegal or legal drugs and alcohol. All these causes have been discussed in previous chapters. Some industrial activities may also expose workers to specific factors that may increase the drowsiness. An effective prevention of the potential damage of drowsiness in industries must carefully consider these intrinsic causes of sleepiness. This chapter will examine briefly the causes of increased daytime sleepiness in industrial activities, considering separately the organizational and physical factors and the properly neurotoxic agents that can be that may be present in the production cycle.