If you suffer from occasional or chronic insomnia – the struggle to get to sleep or to remain asleep for an adequate length of time – then you may feel that you have tried everything and wonder how to get to sleep in an effective, long-lasting, and restful way.
Though there are many “how to get to sleep” instructions that you may be following, ranging from keeping a regular schedule, not eating too close to bedtime, and even drinking chamomile tea, these may not be giving you the quality of sleep that you need. Sometimes doctors prescribe drugs to help, but these often come with side effects, the risk of addiction (and withdrawal symptoms) and a drowsy morning to follow.
For over thirty years, studies have been showing that blue light can lead to a more alert daytime and a more restful nighttime. In the pursuit of how to get sleep using blue light therapy, a great deal of research has been performed, such as the following.
The results of research performed in 1975 were published in the Scandinavian Journal of Work, Environment, and Health. Scientists exposed workers to white light enriched with blue light during the daytime. The participants reported that they were more alert and effective during the daytime and achieved a more restful sleep at night.
More recently, the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism published a study in September 2003 that showed that the natural sleep and awake cycle of the body is influenced by exposure to blue light.
In March 2005, that same journal published another study that showed that exposure to blue light brought about a more steady melatonin cycle, and encouraged steadier thermoregulation, daytime alertness, and heart rate.
If you want to know how to get sleep naturally and effectively, without the use of powerful drugs, you may consider a product as inexpensive as a $3 blue party bulb, installed in a standard bedside lamp. By exposing yourself to blue light for a half hour to an hour before bedtime, your body will begin to produce a hormone called melatonin that will make you feel tired and begin your natural sleep cycle.
