Out of accident prevention. Since the dogs make no sound and there is nothing worse than tripping over one in the dark. Kinda self preservation in case the resultant fall could be fatal.
@macromeh Our first night in this house I was so delighted that I could look up and see stars. Some mornings I wake up to interesting clouds. And occasionally a squirrel or a magpie looking in.
My preschooler is afraid of the dark, so I keep a nightlight in my room for when she inevitably wanders into my room at 4am looking for snuggles (This also helps with me not needing to get out of bed to rescue her).
I sleep better when it is completely dark. As a result I use an eye mask as the landlord has very bright spotlights aimed at the building at night for what reason I do not know. Trees, plants, animals, people, etc. all need the night to be dark.
@Kidsandliz
Same, without the nasty landlord.
Yes- darkness is necessary- even essential for sleeping well and effectively, to the point where even when it doesn’t seem like light is bothering you- it probably is:
Sleeping with even a little bit of light isn’t good for your health, study shows:
Turning off the lights and closing the curtains isn’t exactly a catchy, new sleep hygiene hack, but this common sense advice is gaining even more scientific credibility.
Many Americans sleep in a room that’s punctuated with some form of artificial light — whether it’s coming from a TV, a jumble of electronics or an intrusive streetlight.
New research suggests that one night of sleep with just a moderate amount of light may have adverse effects on cardiovascular and metabolic health.
“I was surprised that even this fairly, I would say, small amount of light just getting through the eyes to the brain still had such notable effect,” says Dr. Phyllis Zee, senior author of the new study and director of the Center for Circadian and Sleep Medicine at Northwestern University.
The findings tie into a broader body of evidence that indicates being exposed to light at night may be harmful in a variety of ways and could predispose people to chronic diseases.
Physiological effects of light
The small, 20-person study conducted by Zee and her team at Northwestern was designed to measure the physiological effects of 100 lux of artificial light on healthy adults while they were sleeping.
“This is about enough light that you could maybe see your way around, but it’s not enough light to really read comfortably,” says Zee. For the study, all the participants spent their first night sleeping in a mostly dark room. The next night, half of them slept in a more illuminated room (the light was placed overhead).
Meanwhile, the researchers ran tests on the sleepers: they recorded their brainwaves, measured their heart rates and drew their blood every few hours, among other things. In the morning, they’d give both groups a big dose of sugar to see how well their systems responded to the spike.
The results, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences this month, show several clear differences between the two groups.
Unlike those who spent both nights in the dark, the group exposed to the light had elevated heart rates throughout the night. They also had increased insulin resistance in the morning, meaning they had more trouble getting their blood sugar into a normal range.
Light can disrupt metabolism
Zee says there are multiple potential ways that being exposed to light at night could disturb our metabolism.
One possibility — supported by research — is that having the light on disrupts the quality of sleep, but surprisingly this study did not find that result while monitoring the people in the lighted room. In fact, the participants generally reported that they thought they slept fine.
The researchers also measured levels of melatonin, a hormone that helps with the timing of circadian rhythms and promotes sleep. Melatonin is typically suppressed during the day and rises at night.
Studies show artificial light at night can suppress melatonin levels, and scientists have found a link between the disruption of melatonin and several diseases, including cancer and diabetes. Though here, too, the study did not find evidence that melatonin levels were lower among the people sleeping with the light on.
“That probably means that the light level that was getting through the eyes was not really bright enough to suppress melatonin,” says Zee.
However, Zee and her team believe that this small amount of light was enough to activate the sympathetic arm of the autonomic nervous system — what’s responsible for the body’s fight or flight response. This is supposed to cool down during sleep as the body moves into a parasympathetic state, when the body’s heart rate and respiration decrease.
The changes in cardiovascular function suggest the small amount of light was enough to shift the nervous system to a more activated and alert state.
“It’s almost like the brain and the heart knew that the lights were on, although the individual was sleeping,” says Zee.
The study is an important example of how even relatively dim light exposure can be disruptive to our sleep-wake cycle, says Dr. Chris Colwell, whose lab at UCLA studies the mechanisms underlying circadian rhythms.
PhysAssist note:
I’ll stop copying the artcile there, but you can go to the NPR website if you’re interested in learning more. There even a 3-miunte audio blurb there, along with some links to other sleep information and studies.
BTW, studies have also shown [bad pun?] that blue light is even more detrimental than white or rose-tones- so we have blue-blocking apps on all our electronic devices [phones, laptops, and tablets].
@Kidsandliz@PhysAssist Somewhat off-topic, but related to sleep and health, I listened to a report on NPR today about sleep apnea and hot weather. The article on their website says, “A new study published in the journal Nature Communications found that the chance of having any kind of sleep apnea problem overnight goes up by almost 50% when it’s 80 degrees Fahrenheit or warmer, compared to when temperatures are in the 50s.” The article implies that the impetus for the study that it cites was rising temperatures due to climate change. Interesting.
@capnjb I am usually asleep within 10 minutes of my head hitting the pillow at night, while my wife has difficulty initially going to sleep and usually reads for a while (with a bed lamp). At the other end, I wake at first daylight, but she sleeps in in the morning.
Somehow we make it work…
@macromeh Yeah, I’ve got Olympic level ADHD so my brain is difficult to silence. I typically wake up around 4:30 and I’ve learned it’s best to not try to fight with my brain so I just get up I do love a good nap though
@capnjb
Just until you slide it up onto your forehead, and in fact, wearing it will preserve your night vision from the ambient light in your bedroom, so you’ll actually see better once you take it off.
I have some small ones in bathrooms and a dark hallway. main bedroom has a large glass door and no curtains. Depending on time of year, late twilight and early AM light makes very little dark time. When moon is happening, lots of light. Makes you more aware we are actually here together on a planet.
I have one of the desk lamps bought from here that is not bad because you can change color temp to “warm” and it has a nightlight mode. I usually turn it off but if it’s too far to reach I cover my eyes with a sheet or just turn the other way.
I have three technically I guess one is in the bathroom, one is out in the dining room, with both of those I can actually walk to the kitchen or to the bathroom. The third one is something I got from here and to go and it’s motion sensitive and a sensitive the power goes off. Normally it’s never dark here because I have a big shopping complex not far away and they haven’t give out a little bit of ambient light 24/7. However if the power goes out and it’s pitch dark I’m not used to it.
I might sleep with a nightlight if the nightlight and I had a sufficiently deep emotional connection, the nightlight was of legal age, and the relationship was entirely consensual. However, it’s probably going to be difficult to find a nightlight that’s eligible to meet all those qualifiers, so no, I won’t be sleeping with any of them.
I only sleep with humans.
No but my nephew does
There is one in the hall, for those late night nature calls.
Out of accident prevention. Since the dogs make no sound and there is nothing worse than tripping over one in the dark. Kinda self preservation in case the resultant fall could be fatal.
@SpacedInvader Ever thought about having the dogs sleep on the bed?
@hchavers @SpacedInvader or another room and closing your door?
@hchavers @jsfs @SpacedInvader Nope. Dogs, or cats on a bed are important survival resources.
@hchavers @jsfs @SpacedInvader 2 things I don’t abide:
That is all…
I have a skylight over my bed, so it’s almost never completely dark.
@Kyeh Similarly, we have a vaulted ceiling in the master bedroom, with a large arched window at the peak. Often lots of moonlight.
@macromeh Our first night in this house I was so delighted that I could look up and see stars. Some mornings I wake up to interesting clouds. And occasionally a squirrel or a magpie looking in.
My preschooler is afraid of the dark, so I keep a nightlight in my room for when she inevitably wanders into my room at 4am looking for snuggles (This also helps with me not needing to get out of bed to rescue her).
I’m scared of the dark…I have a glow in the dark moon ball…it soaks up the sun all day and gives the perfect glow at night.
I sleep better when it is completely dark. As a result I use an eye mask as the landlord has very bright spotlights aimed at the building at night for what reason I do not know. Trees, plants, animals, people, etc. all need the night to be dark.
@Kidsandliz
Same, without the nasty landlord.
Yes- darkness is necessary- even essential for sleeping well and effectively, to the point where even when it doesn’t seem like light is bothering you- it probably is:
https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2022/04/01/1089997121/light-disrupts-sleep
Sleeping with even a little bit of light isn’t good for your health, study shows:
Turning off the lights and closing the curtains isn’t exactly a catchy, new sleep hygiene hack, but this common sense advice is gaining even more scientific credibility.
Many Americans sleep in a room that’s punctuated with some form of artificial light — whether it’s coming from a TV, a jumble of electronics or an intrusive streetlight.
New research suggests that one night of sleep with just a moderate amount of light may have adverse effects on cardiovascular and metabolic health.
“I was surprised that even this fairly, I would say, small amount of light just getting through the eyes to the brain still had such notable effect,” says Dr. Phyllis Zee, senior author of the new study and director of the Center for Circadian and Sleep Medicine at Northwestern University.
The findings tie into a broader body of evidence that indicates being exposed to light at night may be harmful in a variety of ways and could predispose people to chronic diseases.
Physiological effects of light
The small, 20-person study conducted by Zee and her team at Northwestern was designed to measure the physiological effects of 100 lux of artificial light on healthy adults while they were sleeping.
“This is about enough light that you could maybe see your way around, but it’s not enough light to really read comfortably,” says Zee. For the study, all the participants spent their first night sleeping in a mostly dark room. The next night, half of them slept in a more illuminated room (the light was placed overhead).
Meanwhile, the researchers ran tests on the sleepers: they recorded their brainwaves, measured their heart rates and drew their blood every few hours, among other things. In the morning, they’d give both groups a big dose of sugar to see how well their systems responded to the spike.
The results, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences this month, show several clear differences between the two groups.
Unlike those who spent both nights in the dark, the group exposed to the light had elevated heart rates throughout the night. They also had increased insulin resistance in the morning, meaning they had more trouble getting their blood sugar into a normal range.
Light can disrupt metabolism
Zee says there are multiple potential ways that being exposed to light at night could disturb our metabolism.
One possibility — supported by research — is that having the light on disrupts the quality of sleep, but surprisingly this study did not find that result while monitoring the people in the lighted room. In fact, the participants generally reported that they thought they slept fine.
The researchers also measured levels of melatonin, a hormone that helps with the timing of circadian rhythms and promotes sleep. Melatonin is typically suppressed during the day and rises at night.
Studies show artificial light at night can suppress melatonin levels, and scientists have found a link between the disruption of melatonin and several diseases, including cancer and diabetes. Though here, too, the study did not find evidence that melatonin levels were lower among the people sleeping with the light on.
“That probably means that the light level that was getting through the eyes was not really bright enough to suppress melatonin,” says Zee.
However, Zee and her team believe that this small amount of light was enough to activate the sympathetic arm of the autonomic nervous system — what’s responsible for the body’s fight or flight response. This is supposed to cool down during sleep as the body moves into a parasympathetic state, when the body’s heart rate and respiration decrease.
The changes in cardiovascular function suggest the small amount of light was enough to shift the nervous system to a more activated and alert state.
“It’s almost like the brain and the heart knew that the lights were on, although the individual was sleeping,” says Zee.
The study is an important example of how even relatively dim light exposure can be disruptive to our sleep-wake cycle, says Dr. Chris Colwell, whose lab at UCLA studies the mechanisms underlying circadian rhythms.
PhysAssist note:
I’ll stop copying the artcile there, but you can go to the NPR website if you’re interested in learning more. There even a 3-miunte audio blurb there, along with some links to other sleep information and studies.
BTW, studies have also shown [bad pun?] that blue light is even more detrimental than white or rose-tones- so we have blue-blocking apps on all our electronic devices [phones, laptops, and tablets].
@Kidsandliz @PhysAssist Somewhat off-topic, but related to sleep and health, I listened to a report on NPR today about sleep apnea and hot weather. The article on their website says, “A new study published in the journal Nature Communications found that the chance of having any kind of sleep apnea problem overnight goes up by almost 50% when it’s 80 degrees Fahrenheit or warmer, compared to when temperatures are in the 50s.” The article implies that the impetus for the study that it cites was rising temperatures due to climate change. Interesting.
I know my house so well that I can navigate to the dark.
my smoke detector has a green led indicator…
I can’t sleep with a nightlight. My wife can’t sleep without one. I don’t get much sleep
@capnjb
@capnjb I am usually asleep within 10 minutes of my head hitting the pillow at night, while my wife has difficulty initially going to sleep and usually reads for a while (with a bed lamp). At the other end, I wake at first daylight, but she sleeps in in the morning.
Somehow we make it work…
@macromeh Yeah, I’ve got Olympic level ADHD so my brain is difficult to silence. I typically wake up around 4:30 and I’ve learned it’s best to not try to fight with my brain so I just get up
I do love a good nap though 
@capnjb
Try getting a sleep mask- I love mine!
@capnjb separate bedrooms?
@PhysAssist That would probably interfere with my night vision
@capnjb
Just until you slide it up onto your forehead, and in fact, wearing it will preserve your night vision from the ambient light in your bedroom, so you’ll actually see better once you take it off.
I have some small ones in bathrooms and a dark hallway. main bedroom has a large glass door and no curtains. Depending on time of year, late twilight and early AM light makes very little dark time. When moon is happening, lots of light. Makes you more aware we are actually here together on a planet.
I have one of the desk lamps bought from here that is not bad because you can change color temp to “warm” and it has a nightlight mode. I usually turn it off but if it’s too far to reach I cover my eyes with a sheet or just turn the other way.
I leave the mosquito zapper plugged in and on so I guess that blue light counts…
@llangley And blue light is the kind that is most disruptive to sleep.
@ItalianScallion yes…but not as disruptive as the buzz of a mosquito
I have three technically I guess one is in the bathroom, one is out in the dining room, with both of those I can actually walk to the kitchen or to the bathroom. The third one is something I got from here and to go and it’s motion sensitive and a sensitive the power goes off. Normally it’s never dark here because I have a big shopping complex not far away and they haven’t give out a little bit of ambient light 24/7. However if the power goes out and it’s pitch dark I’m not used to it.
I might sleep with a nightlight if the nightlight and I had a sufficiently deep emotional connection, the nightlight was of legal age, and the relationship was entirely consensual. However, it’s probably going to be difficult to find a nightlight that’s eligible to meet all those qualifiers, so no, I won’t be sleeping with any of them.
@werehatrack
Freud: Sometimes a nightlight is just a nightlight.
Absolutely NO light if at all possible. The month that the street light outside our bedroom window was out was the most glorious sleep we’ve ever had
@DocJRoberts Have you tried blackout curtains? They’re pretty effective.
My pup is older and can’t see in the dark. Light keeps him from falling off the bed.
I still remember the quote from family sitcom Family Matters
Harriet: “Carl [you’re so big] your nightlight is a 100W bulb!”