Madge Wildfire
Member
Another point about keeping our bodies in synch with the natural day / night cycle:
The body can only produce the vital hormone melatonin [ from the pineal gland ] if it is in complete darkness during sleep.
Melatonin is an oncostatic hormone, ie cancer inhibiting, and we need it for optimal health.
Suggested reading:
Light at night, Chronodisruption, Melatonin suppression, and Cancer risk: A Review; Russel J Reiter, Dun-Xian Tan, Ahmet Korkmaz, Thomas C Erren, et al. Critical Reviews in Oncogenesis, 13(4):303-328 ( 2007 ).
The above scientific review has references to no less than 132 papers all of which make the case that light at night is a risk for cancer, and the World Health Organisation has acknowledged the risk.
Now you tell me, after I have spent 35 years doing night shifts. :cry: