It’s as if the moonless night sky was lending a hand to the thugs about to rob you down that dark alley. Don’t let the bad guys be the only ones teaming up with darkness! In the right environment, it can help you, too!
Our environments don’t choose to work for good or evil. Mother Nature never picks sides. But the reality is our technology culture can cause a natural disaster of its own. However, we can choose for our surroundings to impact us in a positive way with knowledge.
For instance, one fact from both Shawn Stevenson’s “Sleep Smarter” and Mathew Walker’s “Master Class The Science of Sleep” is the importance of getting outside and getting 30-minutes of light exposure as early as you can every day.
Don’t wear sunglasses! Soak in the sunlight! When your eyes are affected by the morning light, your brain will stop making certain hormones that cause drowsiness. But therein lies the problem. Artificial light from devices, phones, and light bulbs can do the same thing.
At 9:00 p.m., I want my body to be releasing sleepy time hormones like melatonin that make me drowsy and ready for bed. Most lights we use around the house hinder that process. And that is what is called light pollution.
I don’t know of a superhero out there that likes pollution. It’s in the contract. I, Mattman, do solemnly swear to fight against pollution. And light pollution is literally everywhere. When electricity came around, mankind sped into the future! Quality of life improved exponentially. A century later, our environment is so well lit that we now see the consequences of our actions. Let’s dial it back to before electricity.
Oil lamps, torches, and bonfires were the TVs, overhead lights, and cell phones of the past, but their energy output is a different color. Fire puts out red light on the color spectrum and science has found it to be less disruptive with the brain’s ability to produce melatonin. When your brain makes enough melatonin, your body knows it’s time for sleep.
Back in the day, people didn’t have the same levels of distraction and light pollution that we experience. Who knew the old ways could be superior to our almighty smartphones and modern routines?
But I’m not going to give up my smartphone. Instead, I choose to change my behavior so that it enhances my productivity instead of hinders it. It’s bad enough I already spend too much time scrolling through Reddit.
Quick shout out to my favorite subreddit called /r/MasterReturns. It’s videos dedicated to dogs being reunited with their owners after an extended absence. I adore those heartwarming clips and before I know it, I’ve stayed up past my bedtime! And if I just spent hours after sunset staring at a bright screen, it’s harder for me to fall asleep quickly. That sounds like a long ride on the struggle bus tomorrow.
In “Sleep Smarter,” I learned one of the most surprising facts I didn’t know about our body’s sensitivity to light. It’s not just our eyes. Any surface of skin across our entire bodies can sense light.
Light shining on the back of your knee while resting in total darkness still sends your brain confusing signals. So the pollution isn’t just related to what you see but light exposure in general. “But Mattman, if there’s light everywhere then I’m never going to get a good night’s sleep” Rest easy! Don’t lose all hope! Because we have… Super Sleep Solutions.
For more on this episode, click here.
