Spending time outdoors improves the quality of sleep
Who does not like it sleep well. After a day of work and efforts, a well-deserved rest awaits in the bed to recharge the batteries. For this reason, seeking the quality of sleep becomes a very common desire among people. Now a group of researchers They have discovered a new way to do it: spend time outdoors.
Adaptation to light cycles
The study carried out by the University of Colorado followed the quality of the dream of a group of people who had gone to a camping trip. After a week outdoors, their bodies rested better at night and had no problem falling asleep. In addition, the saliva samples showed higher levels of melatonin, "sleep hormone".
The levels of melatonin began to increase more or less with the sunset, and the "biological night" of the campers began two hours before. The explanation? Their organisms had gotten used to the cycles of light.
Being outdoors, her body had adapted to working with light and resting when it was gone. Something that can not be done at home since the artificial lighting causes the body is always active and not find the time to relax and promote good rest.
The researchers point out that the current lifestyle influences our quality of sleep. Because artificial lighting is not only the lamps, televisions and smartphones are also a source of light that makes the body It suits a cycle that is not good for rest. For this reason, those responsible for this study recommend spending time outdoors.
In this way the body will get used to enter a state of relaxation at night, encouraging both adults and children to go to bed at a decent hour. The researchers recommend that after the dinner the organism be exposed as little as possible to artificial light to prevent the body from activating.
Benefits of adapting the biological clock
The researchers highlighted that the fact of have found this way Adapting the biological clock to light cycles has important health benefits. Those people who take longer to find sleep have higher rates of obesity, diabetes and depression. It is also more likely that lack of rest causes fatigue during the workday and feeling of drowsiness that leads to accidents.
At the same time, those responsible for this investigation They explained that not only should the time recommended by the specialists sleep, but at the correct times. Modifying the schedule and going to bed late at night is not something that suits your health. Therefore, this team encourages people to go out in the sun when they can every day, and minimize artificial light.
Damián Montero
