You may have noticed a brighter night sky recently when we experienced a full moon. NASA reports that the event, dubbed the Wolf Moon, began on Thursday afternoon and ended Saturday morning. But have you noticed changes in your personal sleep? patterns in the days leading up to the full moon?
When the last full moon began, a new study was released that suggests a full moon may affect human sleep cycles. Researchers have confirmed that more natural light is available in the nights leading up to a full moon after the sun sets.
The new research found that in the days before a full moon, people go to sleep later in the evening and sleep shorter.
The results were reported in a study that appeared in the publication Science Advances. The research was led by University of Washington biology professor Horacio de la Iglesia.
“When we looked at the data, they were there – we weren’t expecting that pattern at all,” de la Iglesia said in a video about the findings. He said the study provided clear evidence that a person’s sleep-wake cycle is “synchronizedThe moon continues with changes.
The moon takes 27.3 days to orbit the Earth, but it takes 29.5 days to complete a full cycle from new moon to new moon. The new study measured subjects’ sleep patterns as the Moon progressed through at least one entire 29.5-day cycle. Some subjects were tested for two lunar cycles.
On average, people involved in the study slept about 52 minutes less on the nights before a full moon. They also went to bed about 30 minutes later. The study found that people had the last bedtime and shortest amount of sleep during the nights three to five days before a full moon.
“I became one of the study subjects and when I look back at my own data, I couldn’t believe how much my sleep changed,” said de la Iglesia.
Effect on sleep in different areas
Previous studies by de la Iglesia’s team and other research groups have shown this access electricity has a significant effect on sleep. So the team included this element in their research.
The study involved 98 individuals who lived in three different communities of Toba indigenous people in Argentina. Each community had different access to electricity. One rural community had no access to electricity, while a second had limited access. A third community was in a more populated area with full access to electricity.
Sleep data was collected electronically from the individuals via the wrist monitors. The research team said it believes this method has resulted in more effective data than some previous studies that relied solely on user-reported sleep data.
In addition to the indigenous communities, the researchers also examined sleep data from 464 students in the Seattle, Washington area. These data were collected for a separate investigation. The researchers said they found the same patterns of the lunar cycle in the students’ sleep data.
“Although the effect is more robust in communities without access to electricity, the effect is present in communities with electricity, ”said de la Iglesia.
The scientists say further research is needed to help explain other possible causes for the changes in sleep patterns in the subjects. Such causes can include biological differences in individuals or social patterns within communities.
I am Bryan Lynn.
Bryan Lynn wrote this story for VOA Learning English, based on reports from the University of Washington, Science Advances and NASA. Hai Do was the editor.
We want to hear from you. Write to us in the comments section and visit our Facebook page.
Quiz – New research suggests full moon may affect sleep
Start the quiz to find out
________________________________________________________________
Words in this story
pattern – n. a particular way in which something is often done or repeated
bicycle – n. a series of events that occur in a specific order and are repeated often
synchronize – v. make something happen at the same time as something else
access – n. the ability to use or participate in something
indigenous – adj. produced in or naturally present in an area
to monitor – n. a device used to measure something, such as heart rate
robust – adj. strong and healthy