How Does Unnatural Light Affect Humans?

The human body has evolved down the ages and has accordingly adapted to carry out its various life processes depending on whether it is daytime and nighttime based on the rising and setting of the sun this natural time table is known as the circadian rhythm and governed by the hypothalamus situated in the brain region.

Accordingly if we eat at a certain time the food gets digested more efficiently rather than eating at irregular hours the same applies to our sleeping hours. But since the advent of artificial lighting means, man has accordingly adjusted his lifestyle to meet the demands of his profession and other responsibilities which has resulted in his cutting down on his sleeping hours and consequently gets less rest.

According to various studies conducted on this subject, this has resulted in the body going in to stress mode after nightfall which has given rise to a host of illnesses in man like heart disease which were unknown or infrequent in the past.

Another direct effect of unnatural light which has been recently investigated is that the secretion of the hormone melatonin by the pineal gland at nighttime gets affected if one sleeps at late hours or in a lighted environment as the secretion is triggered by receptors on the retina when it gets dark. The hormone is known to retard the growth of tumors especially those related to breast cancer in the human body.

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