Can't sleep? Sometimes as we get older it seems like we are sleep challenged. Wasn't life suppose to get easier?I read an article several months past that was stressing TURN OFF THE LIGHTS when you go to bed. It was saying that we were leaving the rooms too light for everyone. Babies and teenagers were not getting DEEP sleep, and that only happens in the hours before midnight when the room is really dark.
Then the May issue of the Readers Digest had more to say about the same thing, with an added twist. Light suppresses the brain's production of melatonin. That hormone may play a role in immunity or help slow the growth of cancer. People with the lowest levels of melatonin were about 60% more likely to develop breast cancer.
Your body makes melatonin at night only when the room is dark. Even yellow/blue night-lights are enough to suppress melatonin. If you need a light in your bathroom, use a red bulb.
Then eat breakfast by the window - spending 20 minutes in a good dose of sunlight, resetting your natural rhythms, letting your body really know night from day.
Several in my family made their rooms darker and found they were sleeping better. Now for the sunshine part ...
5 comments:
It does get harder to get a good night's sleep as you get older, and this does make a lot of sense. I'm not sure if I can actually make it work for me though. After living in Alaska for 35 years, my sleep cycles are not regulated by light and dark. Each day our amount of daylight increases or decreases by up to 8 minutes a day, which can mean almost an hour in the space of a week. In the winter there are just a few short hours of daylight, and now we are approaching the longest day on June 21st when we have 24 hours of daylight. And, yes, people here do get a little crazy in the summertime cramming as much as possible into a day and sleeping less. I'm reminded of my boys when they were little trying to bargain a later bedtime in the summer because it was still light. I agreed, but only on the condition they go to bed in the winter when it got dark. They decided that was no deal! By the way, I love the photo.
Elaine, you do have a unique situation. I wonder if the body stores melatonin from the long winter sleep? I am sure your sleep cycles are affected by this cycling of light and I am not sure I would do well.
Well, I know my quality of sleep isn't what it used to be. I tried only one night with a nightlight on - didn't work. I had to unplug it. I need total darkness and silence to sleep well. The Owl photo is great. Did you take it with your new Nikon?
My bedroom is on the northwest part of the house.Therfore no morning sun crashing through to wake me early.I don't use a nightlight and am fortunate to sleep like a log.I am mesmirized by those owls. Are they real?I keep thinking I've seen them on Mr. Rogers.
This photo was sent to my from B. Leedy. I don't know where it got it, but it made my point!
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