Better Sleep with Twilight
(The Best Years in Life) Before the Industrial Revolution, when night arrived, the sky darkened. This was conducive to sleep, and our natural circadian rhythms. With the increased use of electricity and electric lights, we turn our nights into days and prevent sleep. Over two-third of Americans suffer from sleep problems. And medicine has now determined that loss of sleep can lead to depression, diabetes, obesity and cancer. More than half of all alcoholics have sleep issues, begs the question of which came first.
Melatonin is a natural hormone that your body uses to regulate sleep cycles. Melatonin is triggered by exposure to light. The natural rhythms of the day are regulated by the pineal gland in what is called Circadian rhythms. Circadian rhythms are the body’s biological clock. The sensor is in the suprachiasmatic nucleus or SCN, in the brain. It is made up of 20,000 neurons in the hypothalamus. Signals are sent to the pineal gland when it is exposed to light. Since the body’s natural melatonin production slows in the dark, the advent of darkness triggers the sleep cycle to begin. But, when we keep exposure to lights during dark hours of the night, we interrupt the circadian rhythms, preventing the production of melatonin, upsetting the internal clock and preventing sleep. Read More.
Melatonin is a natural hormone that your body uses to regulate sleep cycles. Melatonin is triggered by exposure to light. The natural rhythms of the day are regulated by the pineal gland in what is called Circadian rhythms. Circadian rhythms are the body’s biological clock. The sensor is in the suprachiasmatic nucleus or SCN, in the brain. It is made up of 20,000 neurons in the hypothalamus. Signals are sent to the pineal gland when it is exposed to light. Since the body’s natural melatonin production slows in the dark, the advent of darkness triggers the sleep cycle to begin. But, when we keep exposure to lights during dark hours of the night, we interrupt the circadian rhythms, preventing the production of melatonin, upsetting the internal clock and preventing sleep. Read More.
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