Some Say Excessive Exposure to Blue Light Affects Sleep

Columbus Dispatch

11/07/06

Our go-go society is not only physically wearing on us, it might be fatal. Some researchers are concerned we are exposed to too much blue light, especially from fluorescent lights and television and computer screens. "It’s a lifestyle that pushes us beyond what our bodies are designed to deal with, with respect for our inherent need for sleep and the need to rise at a certain time," said Ohio State University neuroscientist Karl Obrietan. Obrietan, who studies the effects of circadian rhythms in cells, said high blood pressure, abnormal pituitary hormone secretions and other physiological problems have been connected to disrupted biological clocks. "It seems like the blue spectrum is the most biologically affective spectrum the human eye can detect," said Dr. Rami Khayat, who treats sleep disorders at Ohio State University Medical Center. "Light entrains our rhythms. It’s an adaptation humans developed over thousands of years. We need to be awake when it’s light and asleep when it’s dark," Khayat said. "Down to the very cell, we are all affected by light. The cell almost wakes you up and does things and goes to sleep."

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