(Amy Norton, HealthDay News) — When people work the night shift, their bodies might have less capacity to repair everyday damage to cells’ DNA, a small study hints.

The research found that people excreted lower levels of a chemical called 8-OH-dG when they worked at night. That might be a sign that the body’s ability to repair DNA damage is diminished.

While this is all theoretical, a number of studies have tied shift work to higher risks of obesity, diabetes, heart disease and certain cancers.

The new findings might point to one reason for those risks, said lead researcher Parveen Bhatti, of the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, in Seattle.