Moonstruck sleep: Synchronization of human sleep with the moon cycle under field conditions
| Autor: | Ignacio Spiousas, Claudia Valeggia, Kaitlyn McGlothlen, Eduardo Fernandez-Duque, Horacio O. de la Iglesia, Leandro P. Casiraghi, Gideon P. Dunster |
|---|---|
| Jazyk: | angličtina |
| Rok vydání: | 2021 |
| Předmět: |
Moonlight
0303 health sciences Multidisciplinary Dusk SciAdv r-articles Neurophysiology Nocturnal Sleep in non-human animals Synchronization 03 medical and health sciences 0302 clinical medicine Moon Cycle Geography 030217 neurology & neurosurgery Research Articles 030304 developmental biology Demography Full moon Field conditions Research Article |
| Zdroj: | Science Advances |
| ISSN: | 2375-2548 |
| Popis: | Sleep is delayed and shortened preceding the full moon phase, both in absence of electric light and in modern urban societies. Before the availability of artificial light, moonlight was the only source of light sufficient to stimulate nighttime activity; still, evidence for the modulation of sleep timing by lunar phases is controversial. Here, we use wrist actimetry to show a clear synchronization of nocturnal sleep timing with the lunar cycle in participants living in environments that range from a rural setting with and without access to electricity in indigenous Toba/Qom communities in Argentina to a highly urbanized postindustrial setting in the United States. Our results show that sleep starts later and is shorter on the nights before the full moon when moonlight is available during the hours following dusk. Our data suggest that moonlight likely stimulated nocturnal activity and inhibited sleep in preindustrial communities and that access to artificial light may emulate the ancestral effect of early-night moonlight. |
| Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
| Externí odkaz: |
|