What is ‘blue light’ and is it making you gain weight?
Answer this: is the last thing you do before you fall asleep check your social media, email or text messages? Do you need your television on in order to fall asleep? If the answer to either of the above questions is yes, this may be a reason for any weight gain.
How? The answer is the blue light emitted from your electronic devices. Blue light, specifically the wavelength that emits blue light, is beneficial to us and a known mood booster during the morning and afternoon hours. However, this changes at night. When you use artificial lighting, particularly at night, it has the potential to throw off the body’s sleep cycle and circadian rhythm.
Certain studies suggest that sleep disruption, as well as a disturbance to the body’s circadian rhythm, can contribute to the following disorders:
• Obesity and obesity-related disorders, such as diabetes
• Cancer
• Heart disease
How does this artificial light exposure affect the body?
According to an article published by Harvard Health Publishing, the use of artificial light at night has the ability to throw off melatonin production. Melatonin is a hormone produced by the brain’s pineal gland which assists in regulating the body’s sleep cycle.
Sleep deprivation causes other hormones in the body to slow production, which in turn slows down bodily functions, thus promoting weight gain. And, as we know, as our weight increases, the likeliness for weight-related health issues increases as well.
So, what can I do?
While a direct link between blue light and weight gain has not been officially confirmed, there are certain measures one can take in order to reduce their use of blue light:
• Try and reduce your screen time before bed
• Engage in some sort of regular exercise daily
• Limit eating before sleep
• Increase time spent outdoors
If you would like to learn more about Theramotion’s work with patients, please contact us at 718-279-9800. Additionally, you can fill out contact information on our Contact Us page and we will get back to you.