Effects Of Artificial Light On Sleep

How Does Artificial Light Affect Sleep

Have you ever wondered why people sleep with the lights off? Or why you can be extremely tired until you start watching TV or playing on your phone. You probably don’t think light has a very big effect on sleep. But perhaps light, or artificial light, may have a more serious effect on sleep than you think. According to some online resources, it causes a sleep causing hormone to be suppressed and messes up our whole sleep cycle. It may also even be the main cause of sleep disorders.

A resource from Harvard Medical School states that our internal clock is regulated by light. There are cells in our eyes that detect light and tell our brain when it is nighttime or daytime, this way we know when to sleep. But since the invention of the light bulb, we are exposed to light later in the day when there is usually no light. Because of this, our eyes tell us the time is earlier than it actually is, so our bodies want to prefer later sleeping times. So the light causes our internal clock to reset, and makes us prefer different sleeping times.

According to Britannica, a person’s sleep and wake cycle, called the circadian rhythm, is regulated by melatonin production. Melatonin is a hormone that causes us to become tired. It causes changes that promote sleep, such as the body temperature and breathing rate decreasing. The production of melatonin is influenced by light. The retina detects light, and cells in the retina send signals to the brain about the light stature. Then depending on how much light there is the melatonin either ramps up production or is limited. More light equals limited melatonin, causing us to be awake, and low light equals more melatonin, so we fall asleep. That is how the light chan...

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...sleep, which was seven people, all of them used some kind of electronic device in the hour before sleeping, and had or sometimes had trouble sleeping. So it supports the idea that light suppresses melatonin, and causes loss of sleep. Of the three who got less than eight hours of sleep, two of them either sometimes or didn’t have trouble falling asleep. The other one did use electronics in the hour before bed, and did have trouble falling asleep.

I would say that the survey supports my conclusion. Whenever the people used electronic devices in the hour before going to sleep, they had trouble falling asleep and usually got less than eight hours of sleep. Also, whenever they didn’t use electronic devices in the hour before going to sleep, they usually didn’t have trouble going to sleep, and got more than eight hours of sleep. So I would say it supports my conclusion.