Light and Your Sleep-Wake Cycle as a Night Shift Worker

0:00
light is important because light is the
0:01
most essential regulator of our body's
0:03
circadian rhythms and the way that this
0:05
works is is light from the outside
0:07
environment let's say the sun for
0:09
instance is perceived by the retinas in
0:12
our eyes and that information is then
0:14
relayed via a nerve to the brain
0:17
specifically the superismatic nucleus
0:19
which then tells the hypothalamus
0:22
another region of our brain that
0:23
releases hormones what time of day it is
0:26
and this release of hormones from the
0:29
hypothalamus then communicates this
0:31
information to the rest of the body now
0:34
exposure to light in the early part of
0:37
our waking time is not just important
0:39
for our general feelings of energy but
0:42
it's also important for the next time
0:43
that we go to sleep and this has been
0:46
shown in individuals who are shift
0:47
workers where shift workers who are
0:50
exposed to artificial or natural forms
0:53
of light upon waking show a 30%
0:56
reduction in the disturbances of sleep
0:59
the next time that they choose to go to
1:01
sleep and so it's not just the case that
1:03
light is helping us feel awake it's also
1:05
the case that exposure to light early
1:07
upon waking is helping us sleep the next
1:10
time that we go to sleep now on the flip
1:13
side of this coin it's also the case
1:14
that exposure to light too close to
1:17
going to sleep can influence our ability
1:19
to sleep and the reason that this
1:21
happens is this artificial light let's
1:24
say from our screens or from our
1:26
televisions is perceived by the eyes and
1:29
the superismatic nucleus as being
1:32
daytime and what this causes is a
1:34
reduction in the release of a hormone
1:36
called melatonin which is responsible
1:38
for a drop in body temperature and a
1:40
general preparedness for sleep and this
1:43
reduction in melatonin will make us feel
1:46
less sleepy and as a result can
1:48
influence our ability to fall asleep so
1:50
it's quite important to manage our
1:52
exposure to light for our general
1:54
circadian rhythms and our well-being