With winter fast approaching, the weather is getting colder and wetter. The sun is in the sky for less and less time, and with that, there are some problems that we can anticipate will happen.
Lack of sunlight causes a wide variety of problems. Our circadian rhythm is synchronized to the rising and setting of the sun. When we do not get enough exposure to the sun, it can throw off our natural sleep-wake cycle, affect our mood, and overall health.
It is no wonder that seasonal affective disorder (SAD) is such a huge problem in areas such as the Pacific Northwest where seeing the sun is a rarity during the winter.
To mitigate these problems, try out this cheap hack every morning.
1. Expose Yourself to Morning Sunlight
You may have seen this one coming. One way to naturally set our circadian rhythm is to expose yourself to sunlight every morning. There is also good evidence to suggest that exposure to morning sunlight can also optimize hormone balance and improve mood. In fact, bright light exposure is often a large part of treating seasonal affective disorders and depression.
Getting full spectrum sunlight in the morning is the best way to achieve this. You must also let some of the light into your eyes (without, of course, staring directly into the sun). Try to avoid using sunglasses if you can. If possible, try to get outside. It has been shown that even clear windows can filter and block a large spectrum of the light coming from the sun.
Even during overcast days, sunlight coming through the clouds tends to be brighter than most indoor light.
2. Expose Yourself to Any Bright Light
Ideally, the first choice of this “hack” is to get some sunlight exposure. Barring that possibility, the next best option will be to expose yourself to some other form of bright light. Ideally, a bright white light will be the best.
For myself, I use one of those ring lights that content creators like to use. They tend to be affordable and come with a stand, which is important for the next part.
Try and position the light above your head. A lot of the cells that respond to morning sunlight and set forth a lot of these processes that we are talking about here are on the bottom half of the eye, so light position is important.
Bottom line
This is one of the easiest, cheap hacks that you can perform every morning that will help regulate your sleep-wake cycle, help with hormone balance, improve mood, and improve your overall well-being.
I don’t normally endorse “hacks”, but this is one that has enough evidence and gets my stamp of approval.
References
Bedrosian TA, Nelson RJ. Timing of light exposure affects mood and brain circuits. Transl Psychiatry. 2017;7(1):e1017. Published 2017 Jan 31. doi:10.1038/tp.2016.262
Parry BL, Maurer EL. Light treatment of mood disorders. Dialogues Clin Neurosci. 2003;5(4):353-365. doi:10.31887/DCNS.2003.5.4/bparry
