Do This Before Bedtime. You Won't Sleep

If you're having trouble falling asleep at night, your passion for your
computer could be to blame. According to researchers from the Akita University
School of Medicine in Akita, Japan doing work on a computer or playing video
games
right before bedtime can keep you awake--for hours. The bright light of the
computer screen is to blame for this. That light can actually alter your
biological clock and suppress the natural production of melatonin that governs
your
normal sleep-wake cycle. Sleep problems ensue when melatonin declines and
exposure to light can cause it to dip.

<A
HREF="http://webcenters.compuserve.com/wmconnect/news/package.jsp?name=news/slee\
pdeprived/sleepdeprived&floc=wn-wm">We human beings are hardwired to sleep eight
hours a day. What happens when
we don't do this? No matter the reason, when we deprive our bodies of sleep,
there are significant physical and mental consequences.</A>

The study: The Japanese researchers tested the effect of late-night computer
use on melatonin production, as well as other bodily functions that are known
to change when we sleep, such as temperature and heart rate. For this
experiment, seven male computer users with an average age of 25 awakened between
8 and
9 a.m. and went to bed--without using the computer--between midnight and 1
a.m. for one week. At the end of that week, they used the computer--either
playing a video game or solving math problems--with a bright or dark display
monitor on alternating nights between 11:30 p.m. and 2 a.m. And then they went
to
bed.

<A
HREF="http://webcenters.compuserve.com/wmconnect/news/package.jsp?name=fte/moona\
ffectsleep/moonaffectsleep&floc=wn-wm">There's an old wives' tale that our sleep
is disturbed during a full moon.
Austrian scientists tested that theory. Click to find out if it's true.</A>

The results: The brightness of the computer screen and the type of task
performed significantly affected the melatonin production. The brighter the
screen
and the more exciting the task, the lower the melatonin. Body temperature,
which normally drops at night, also rose. The takeaway: Use the computer earlier
in the evening, and it will be easier to fall asleep. The study findings were
published in Journal of Applied Physiology.

<A
HREF="http://portal.compuserve.com/wrap/linker.asp?floc=wn-wm&ref=http://www.cnn\
.com/HEALTH/indepth.health/sleeping.conditions/insomnia.html">Find out the signs
of insomnia, the three different types of insomnia, and
what you can do to beat it.</A>

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Y<·´¯`·YMommie to Tristan Y·´¯`·>Y
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"People are like stained glass windows.....their true beauty is revealed only
if there is a light within."




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