One of the factors that have the most impact on our health, and even the most important, is sleep. According to a study, it was announced that insufficient sleep causes obesity in 89% of children and 55% of adults. According to another study, it was revealed that sleeping 7 to 8 hours a day reduces the risk of heart attack and Type 2 Diabetes. A new study has revealed a result that will upset those who like to sleep, especially in bright environments.
A Northwestern Medicine study of older men and women ages 60 to 84 found that people exposed to any level of light while sleeping at night are at a much greater risk of developing diseases such as obesity, high blood pressure, and diabetes than other people.
The tests took seven days and the results are not encouraging.
Northwestern Medicine experts, who conducted a new study, revealed that exposure to light during sleep ages the person prematurely and causes serious health problems. For seven days, in tests using a device worn on the subjects’ wrist, some subjects slept in a lighted environment, while others slept in an unlit environment. In the test, in which 552 people participated, only 270 people slept in a dark environment for at least 5 hours a day. The rest of the participants were exposed to some light even during the five darkest hours of the day, which is usually in the middle of their night’s sleep.
Participating in the research, Dr. “We live among a multitude of artificial light sources that can be used 24 hours a day, whether it’s from a smartphone, leaving the TV on all night, or light pollution in a big city. “Older adults are already at higher risk for diabetes and cardiovascular disease, so we wanted to see if there was a difference in the frequency of these diseases related to light exposure at night.” He explained the purpose of the research.
As a result of the experiments, it was revealed that people who are exposed to light while sleeping have a higher risk of getting sick. These diseases include diabetes, obesity, high blood pressure and cardiovascular diseases. Explaining that sleeping in a light environment also reduces the quality of sleep, experts explained that those exposed to light sleep later and wake up later.
Researchers who also studied the effect of sleeping with light exposure on teenagers found that a lit environment, even in dim light, caused higher blood sugar and heart rate in teenagers and adults while sleeping.