# Fatigue and the risks of late-night activity

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fatigue-and-the-risks-of-late-night-activity/545382>\
**Category:** Cecil's Columns/Staff Reports\
**Created:** [July 3, 2010, 2:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fatigue-and-the-risks-of-late-night-activity/545382 "2010-07-03T02:25:57Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 1\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Measure\_for\_Measure](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/measure_for_measure/32/557_2.png) [@Measure\_for\_Measure](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Measure_for_Measure)\
**Post date:** [July 3, 2010, 2:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fatigue-and-the-risks-of-late-night-activity/545382/1 "2010-07-03T02:25:57Z")

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In his latest column, [Will working the graveyard shift put you in one sooner?](http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/2945/will-working-the-graveyard-shift-put-you-in-one-sooner) Cecil writes, “Common sense suggests night work is stressful; studies show the risk of on-the-job accidents is 30 percent higher at night.”

That latter statistic may reflect fatigue more than anything else. On our roads, the fatality rate per mile traveled is [about three times higher at night](http://www.forbes.com/2009/01/21/car-accident-times-forbeslife-cx_he_0121driving.html). Drilling down into the data further one sees [remarkable peaks in risk](http://www.scitopics.com/Motor_Vehicle_Occupant_Injury_and_Fatality_Risks_Age_Gender_Day_of_Week_Time_of_Day_and_their_Remarkable_Interactions.html) in the 2 hours after midnight. Eyeballing the graph, it appears that risks can be elevated to 10-20 times that of, say, the middle of the day. Then again, there’s a pronounced weekend effect, indicating that alcohol and young male testosterone also plays a role.

Not that fatigue is especially healthy or enjoyable either.