Artificial Light at Night linked to Depression

Sleeping in a lit/dimly lit room may cause changes in brain that are linked to depression. Researches in Ohio State University have studied brains of rodents. They found out that low-light exposure every night reduces the density of dendritic spines--the hair like growth on brain cells that send chemical messages from one cell to another and regulate moods.

Study Author Tracy Bedrosian declares that artificial  light (any light other than sunlight) at night suppresses the hormone melatonin. "The level of light used in our study was similar to that which a person would easily experience falling asleep in front of a dark room". He concluded that it is a good idea to switch off unnecessary lights at night although more research must be done in this regard.

Data was collected from HealthSmart, RD Asia