Skip to main content

Sleep in the dark

This is something that I've referred to before and frankly something that scares me. I've previously mentioned the importance of sleeping in the dark, but this report stresses how important it is:

Artificial light at night disrupts cell division

Just 1 'pulse' of artificial light at night disrupts the circadian mode of cell division -- 1 of the body's mechanisms that is damaged in the development of cancer
Labels:

Comments

Chloe said…
I wonder, would light bouncing off of clouds and through my bedroom window be considered artificial light? I guess it's probably light pollution?
April 13, 2010 at 7:52 AM
Scott W said…
I too took your advice when you first mentioned it and am very careful to make my bedroom dark.

But...really? Moonlight is different from all other wavelengths of light? Firelight is? Primal man never woke during the night to feed the fire or check for wolves? We're not adapted to some intermittent light during the night?

Just thinking out loud...

Scott W
April 13, 2010 at 3:46 PM
Jana said…
We don;t have curtains on our bedroom windows-do you think that's a problem?
Jana
April 16, 2010 at 7:53 PM
Mike T Nelson said…
Freaky indeed. Any other studies that found similar results?

Rock on
Mike T Nelson PhD(c)
Extreme Human Performance
April 23, 2010 at 4:33 PM
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Dry January

I mentioned a few weeks ago that I was taking part in "Dry January".  I didn't make a big song and dance about it, but I decided to go for a calendar month or so with no alcohol.  A few people have asked me about my experience, so here are a few points. Why take a break from drinking? Alcohol is an interesting topic.  As a drug it is widely accepted in society, central to so much of our socialising and leisure.  There seem to be lots of health benefits - so we are told - yet there are also a lot of problems in terms of health, relationships and lifestyle that come from drinking. Over a few years I'd begun to become aware and then concerned that I was drinking too much and too regularly.  I am in a busy and stressful job and sometimes a glass of wine after work to relax is really helpful.  But over time, one glass became two.  Two glasses became ....I might as well finish the bottle.  A habit got established....and was starting to get too e...
7 comments
Read more

So where have I been?

You will have noticed that this blog has been quiet for a while....  There are a few reasons for that, reasons that I thought I'd list here: WORK -  my day job has been incredibly busy and stressful this year. Working 10-14 hour days the last thing on my mind when I got home was putting something on here.  FACEBOOK/TWITTER - I suppose I've been using other channels to do some of what I used to do here. Quick fire posts pointing to interesting studies or news etc tend to get posted to Twitter (@chrishighcock) or to the Facebook Hillfit group http://www.facebook.com/groups/263083947097000/  REASSESSMENT - I've found myself less comfortable with some of the positions I've taken in the past. Sometimes I'm embarrassed by some of the things I've promoted. I'm not Paleo or low carb. I think Tabata and intervals are misunderstood and misapplied. I cannot really claim to be HIT.   I find myselfunable  honestly to post things on here and pretend that I am some sort o...
12 comments
Read more

Taking up space for a brief update

I've a couple of posts in draft that I will get up soon -  an update / reflection on Dry January and some thoughts on the scheduling benefits of short workouts if your life is busy.  Before that though, I am pointing to something else. However, I wanted to highlight something that is coming this weekend that I've been involved in.   Amber Rogers (Gokaleo and author of Taking Up Space ) has been pulling together a bundle of books from various authors with a common theme, one that I've been pushing here recently.   Keep it simple, avoid the hype, be patient, be consistent and flee the gurus.   I've talked before about how we get obsessed with pushing for more and more, when enough is OK.  I've given my view that so much of the health and fitness internet world is more like a gnostic religion than something that will benefit your life. There are other voices out there saying similar things and I'll be pointing to a bundle of books later this week ...
1 comment
Read more