{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,6]],"date-time":"2026-07-06T14:24:32Z","timestamp":1783347872661,"version":"3.54.6"},"reference-count":13,"publisher":"Frontiers Media SA","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,6]],"date-time":"2026-07-06T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1783296000000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":["frontiersin.org"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["Front. Med."],"abstract":"<jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Background<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>In the sustainment of health, the role of a well-functioning gut and effective digestion in sustaining health and contributing to disease development is immensely important. According to Ayurveda, digestive function is governed by Ja\u1e6dhar\u0101gni (digestive fire), and an impaired Ja\u1e6dhar\u0101gni (Mandagni) is considered a key factor in the initiation of many diseases. There are four types of expression of digestive fire (Ja\u1e6dhar\u0101gni) based on the predominance of the three humors, such as Visham\u0101gni (irregular digestion), 2. T\u012bk\u1e63\u1e47\u0101gni (excessively intense digestion), 3. Mand\u0101gni (slow digestion), and 4. Sam\u0101gni (balanced digestion). The state of Ja\u1e6dhar\u0101gni is influenced by several physiological factors, including season, time of day, age, constitution, dosha balance, and the quality and quantity of food consumed. Among shift workers, especially those engaged in rotating shifts, maintaining a regular lifestyle and dietary habits is often challenging. Disrupted sleep\u2013wake cycle and an altered diet habit adversely affect normal gut physiology and impair digestion, metabolism, and gut transit time. The rising importance of shift work in modern society and an increase in the prevalence of metabolic and gastrointestinal disorders associated with the disruption of circadian rhythm highlight the need for research on digestive health among shift workers. Understanding the scientific framework on the relationship between Ja\u1e6dhar\u0101gni and altered work shifts and suggesting balanced lifestyle practices may contribute to the prevention of bad impacts on metabolic and digestive health.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Materials and methods<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>\n                      A comparative, cross-sectional study was conducted among Information Technology (IT) employees from various companies in Technopark, Thiruvananthapuram, to assess the status of Ja\u1e6dhar\u0101gni among fixed-shift and rotating-shift workers. The sample size was calculated using Nassiuma\u2019s formula, and 350 employees were selected, comprising 175 fixed-shift workers and 175 rotating-shift workers (alternating between day and night shifts monthly) using a convenience sampling technique. Agnibala was assessed using a validated questionnaire published by Aparna Singh, Girish Singh, Kishore Patwardhan, and Sangeeta Gehlot, Department of Kriya \u015aar\u012bra, Banaras Hindu University (BHU), Varanasi, India (2016 May) (27381899; PMCID: PMC 5871217). The questionnaire was validated using a Cronbach\u2019s alpha of 0.73 for the overall scale. For fixed-shift workers, Agnibala assessment was performed once during their routine work schedule. For rotating-shift workers, the assessment was carried out twice, once during the day-shift cycle and again during the night-shift cycle, with data collection conducted at the end of each respective shift period to capture the influence of different work schedules on Ja\u1e6dhar\u0101gni status. Data were analyzed using the chi-squared test and the McNemar test. A\n                      <jats:italic>p<\/jats:italic>\n                      -value of &amp;lt; 0.05 was considered statistically significant. Cramer\u2019s V test and Cohen\u2019s test were used to calculate effect sizes for the chi-squared test and McNemar test, respectively.\n                    <\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Results and discussion<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>The study indicated that most fixed-shift workers had an Agnibala status consistent with their Prakriti. In contrast, 61.7% of rotating-shift workers reported a change in their Agni status due to their job nature, with many shifting to Vishamagni during their night shifts. Statistical analysis confirmed that the nature of work significantly affects the Ja\u1e6dhar\u0101gni status, along with other factors such as Prakriti, habits, and diet. Based on these findings, it was recommended to adopt a diet and lifestyle plan tailored to Agni status to mitigate health impacts.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Conclusion<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>This study findings suggest that rotating-shift work is associated with changes in the status of Agnibala, which may reflect disturbances in digestive and metabolic functioning. These observations indicate a possible relationship between shift work, circadian rhythm disruption, and digestive health. Although this study provides useful insights, further research involving larger populations, longitudinal designs, and molecular investigations is warranted to better understand these associations.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>","DOI":"10.3389\/fmed.2026.1850861","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,6]],"date-time":"2026-07-06T13:44:48Z","timestamp":1783345488000},"update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3389\/crossmark-policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["A cross-sectional survey to evaluate the status of digestion in rotating- and fixed-shift workers"],"prefix":"10.3389","volume":"13","author":[{"given":"Lekshmy","family":"Madhavan Potti Lathadevi","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Maulika Siddhanta (Basic Principles of Ayurveda), Amrita School of Ayurveda, Amrita Viswavidyapeetham","place":["Amritapuri, India"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Haritha","family":"Chandran","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Maulika Siddhanta (Basic Principles of Ayurveda), Amrita School of Ayurveda, Amrita Viswavidyapeetham","place":["Amritapuri, India"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Haroon","family":"Irshad","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Ayurveda Samhita Siddhanta, Sri Dharmasthala Manjunatheswara college of Ayurveda and Hospital","place":["Hassan, Karnataka, India"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Leena","family":"Parameswaran Nair","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Maulika Siddhanta (Basic Principles of Ayurveda), Amrita School of Ayurveda, Amrita Viswavidyapeetham","place":["Amritapuri, India"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1965","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,6]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref1","volume-title":"Sushruta Samhita with Nibandhasangraha Commentary of Dalhana","author":"Acharya Kavyatirtha","year":"2013"},{"key":"ref2","volume-title":"Ashtanga Hrudaya of Vagbhata with Sarvanga Sundara of Arunadutta and Ayurvedeeya Rasayana of Hemadri","author":"Paradakara","year":"2012"},{"key":"ref3","volume-title":"Charaka Samhita by Agnivesha Revised by Charaka and Dridabala with the Ayurveda Dipika Commentary of Chakrapanidutta","author":"Acharya","year":"2013"},{"key":"ref4","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"105273","DOI":"10.1016\/j.ijnurstu.2025.105273","article-title":"The prevalence and risk factors of shift work disorder among nurses: a systematic review and meta-analysis","volume":"174","author":"Zhao","year":"2026","journal-title":"Int J Nurs 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Syndr"},{"key":"ref11","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"1275","DOI":"10.1080\/07420528.2025.2540039","article-title":"Shift work, gut dysbiosis, and circadian misalignment: the combined impact of nighttime light exposure, nutrients, and microbiota rhythmicity","volume":"42","author":"Touitou","year":"2025","journal-title":"Chronobiol Int"},{"key":"ref12","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"360","DOI":"10.1016\/j.jaim.2020.05.013","article-title":"Prakriti phenotypes as a stratifier of gut microbiome: a new frontier in personalized medicine?","volume":"11","author":"Jnana","year":"2020","journal-title":"J Ayurveda Integr Med"},{"key":"ref13","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"e2022009","DOI":"10.23749\/mdl.v113i1.12622","article-title":"Application of P4 (predictive, preventive, personalized, participatory) approach to occupational medicine","volume":"113","author":"Boffetta","year":"2022","journal-title":"Med Lav"}],"container-title":["Frontiers in Medicine"],"original-title":[],"link":[{"URL":"https:\/\/www.frontiersin.org\/articles\/10.3389\/fmed.2026.1850861\/full","content-type":"unspecified","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"similarity-checking"}],"deposited":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,6]],"date-time":"2026-07-06T13:44:49Z","timestamp":1783345489000},"score":1,"resource":{"primary":{"URL":"https:\/\/www.frontiersin.org\/articles\/10.3389\/fmed.2026.1850861\/full"}},"subtitle":[],"short-title":[],"issued":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,6]]},"references-count":13,"alternative-id":["10.3389\/fmed.2026.1850861"],"URL":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3389\/fmed.2026.1850861","relation":{},"ISSN":["2296-858X"],"issn-type":[{"value":"2296-858X","type":"electronic"}],"subject":[],"published":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,6]]},"article-number":"1850861"}}