How Watching Too Much TV Hinders Your Sleep
When the morning comes, you wake up. When the night comes, you sleep. You've been doing this pattern all your life that you didn't give much thought about the sleep-wake cycle of a person. Until you have sleeping problems. And you're reading this right now because you want to know why.
After the sun has set and the night comes, you surround yourself with bulbs, TVs, gadgets, and other electronic devices. These electronic fixtures and devices produce artificial lighting that emits blue light. Blue light is also present in the rays of the sun.
The blue light coming from the artificial lighting, for example TV, hinders the creation of melatonin. What is melatonin exactly? Melatonin is one of the many hormones produced inside the brain. When there is a sufficient amount of melatonin, you start to feel sleepy and your body takes its rest. But when there's a setback on the melatonin production because of the blue light, you won't be able to rest properly.
Why is sleep important? Simply put, your body is doing some 'housekeeping' duties when you sleep. When you're tossing and turning in bed at night, you will find yourself groggy or sleepy in the morning. The natural reaction of your body is to seek comfort from high dense carbohydrates and sugary food. So when we say that watching TV causes obesity, it is true. And it is a fact.
Yes, you read that right. Obesity. When you're exposed to the blue light coming from the TV and other artificial lighting sources around and inside your home, your body clock gets messed up causing the change in the regulation and production of the hormones and metabolism, eventually affecting other organs and system functions.
The internal clock in your body known as the circadian rhythm synchronizes and manages the daily cycles that govern our eating patterns and habits. You may feel that your sleepiness is relieved but the outcome of consuming more than the amount you can expend is building up unwanted pounds leading to obesity.
In a study conducted by JAMA Internal Medicine in 44,000 women, the ones who were exposed to artificial lighting at night especially from the TVs gained five kilograms additional weight compared to those that are not exposed to any artificial lighting. While the study has been focused on women, it is more likely to have similar results in men.
It's sounds scary: watching TV before going to sleep can “present” you few more kilograms, but not a relaxation or a happiness. It's rather better to read a book or to do a hobbie because being exposed to the blue light disrupts sleep and keeps the body awake.
