Sunday Standup:
Book Recommendation:
The Sleep Solution is an exciting journey of sleep self-discovery and understanding that will help you custom design specific interventions to fit your lifestyle.
Get it here: The Sleep Solution: Why Your Sleep is Broken and How to Fix It
Research Articles of the Week:
“Sleeping in a bed that isolates from EMFs and drains them can be a strategy to improve the secretion of hormones related to a better response to stress and sleep quality, which means a better endocrine system, and consequently better homeostasis and maintenance of health."
“Gut microbiota communicates with the brain and vice versa through complex bidirectional communication systems - the gut-brain axis, which integrates the peripheral intestinal function with emotional and cognitive brain centers via neuro-immuno-endocrine mediators.”
Role of gut-brain axis, gut microbial composition, and probiotic intervention in Alzheimer's disease
“Our study found the prevalence of smartphones addiction among university students to be high (66%), furthermore a correlation between heavy smartphones usage and hand pain was found which indicates that heavy usage of these devices can cause subclinical effects on the human hand.”
The association between smartphone addiction and thumb/wrist pain: A cross-sectional study
How light exposure matters.
Incandescent light bulbs were introduced in the late 1800s and since the world has become awash in bright lights. Artificial light has become a staple of our everyday living, including lamps that light up every street and city skyline, or cell phones that light up our individual worlds.
This new well lit environment has absolutely transformed our every day life. For example, in 1994 an earthquake temporarily knocked out the power in Los Angeles. Residents reportedly called local emergency centers to report seeing a strange “giant, silvery cloud” in the dark sky. For the first time – they were in fact seeing the Milky Way.
2/3 of the U.S. population and more than 1/2 of the European population have already lost the ability to see the Milky Way with the naked eye. Moreover, 63% of the world population and 99% of the population of the Europe & the United States (aside from Alaska & Hawaii) live in areas where the night sky is brighter than the threshold for “light-polluted status”.
But what does this have to do with your health? Well, increased artificial light exposure has been linked with circadian rhythm sleep-wake disorders, where the circadian rhythm is misaligned with the natural light-dark cycle.
Abnormal patterns of light exposure cause:
sleep disturbances
mood disorders
desynchrony of cortisol, body temperature
melatonin rhythms & production
metabolic syndrome
cardiovascular disease
cancers(***)
neurodegenerative disorders (PD, AD)
abbreviated lifespan
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