The purpose of this page is to address concerns Shift Workers may have about how their non-standard sleeping pattern may affect a saliva hormone test result. In short, anybody can test their hormones irrespective of their sleep schedule but there is s small difference. By alerting us of your shift-work-status, we are able to make the necessary adjustments required to synchronise the test report ‘reference ranges’.
Let’s take a look a what exactly that adjustment is, and why it’s important when it comes to saliva cortisol testing for shift workers.
– Stock standard Cortisol collection schedule.
Hard body templates & test machines
Pathology test reports are produced on hard body templates which, by design, include a standard sleep/wake cycle – I.E. sleep around 8M – 10PM, and wake at 7AM. These test result templates are embedded into the machinery during manufacture and cannot be modified to suit each and every test.
What does this mean for Shift Workers?
When it comes to the day/night 24 hour clock which underpins the test report data, we are going to see this standard cycle applied. This definitely isn’t ideal for the average shift worker. Fortunately, there’s a fix.
Simple additional step
An additional step involving a small adjustment to the collection time(s) is performed by the laboratory tech team during testing. In short, the lab will recalibrate the collection time to fit the correct reference range. This ensures all test results are affixed to the correct time-of-day (TOD) reference range.
Still confused? Here is an example;
When viewing the test report, we will see that the specimen, collected at 2:30PM, (30 minutes after actual wake time), is now noted as a 07:30AM (collection time) result. Realigning the test result to the test report template standard sleep-wake cycle is done to apply the appropriate reference range for accurate comparison.
Time re-alignment makes results interpretation easy
With single hormone saliva tests such as the Saliva Testosterone Test Kit [T9906] it’s easy to do. Simply make it known that you’re a shift worker so the lab understand that your non-standard collection time(s) is intentional.
This is as simple as writing “shift worker” at the top of the lab Referral Form located within the test kit.
Finally, the lab manually re-aligns the test result to reflect the intended test time (reference range).
What About the Larger Tests?
Tests with multiple specimen collections like the Adrenal Function Extended Profile (DHEAs X 1 + Cortisol X 4) which includes four specimen collection over the day are no different. The collection intervals do not change irrespective of the time of the day.
For a shift worker doing a 4 point saliva test, instructions for specimen collection look like this;
- The first sample (cor1+dhea) is collected 30 minutes after waking, no matter what time that is.
- The second sample (cor2) is collected 4 hours later.
- The third (cor3) 4 hours later
- And the fourth (cor4), the same, 4 hours later, before bed. (test window length total 12-14 hrs)
Approximately 1.5 million Australians currently identify as Shift Workers*, and they also make up a significant portion of our client base. TestoChecker™ appreciates the sacrifices made by Shift Workers here in Australia, by our dedicate emergency services, interstate trucking fleets & independent truckers, our nightshift nurses and road workers and let’s not forget taxi operators too. These people deserve and usually get the upmost respect for the often unseen work they do.
*Australian Bureau of Statistics.
Published: 11.02.25. Revised 29.08.2025
Will medicines or supplements affect my hormone test results? FAQ Page
Will Minerals or Vitamins affect my hormone test results? FAQ Page