Enjoy This Week’s CommonHealth Weekly Wellnote

Need to restore Your Circadian Rhythm?  Many of us have seen an uptick in the use of devices in our daily lives, and this use often extends well into the evening hours. This means we are exposed to a lot more blue light after dark than just a generation or two ago when the sun was our primary source. This wavelength of light suppresses the production of a very important sleep hormone, melatonin. This is why the sun wakes us in the morning and we feel sleepier in dark environments. The blue light from our screens can signal to our brains that it’s time to be awake when we’d rather be sleeping. Blue light can be beneficial for establishing a healthy circadian rhythm though, if we minimize our blue light exposure from screens after dark.

During the day, try to get more sunshine, or use a light box.  In the evening, adjust screen brightness on your devices, use a night light filter, and turn devices off well before bedtime.  Another helpful tip is to dim overhead lights after dark.

To optimize your children’s sleep, pick a time at or before sunset to cut off screen use. When kids use devices long into the evening, it keeps them wired when they should be yawning.

Good sleep is key to good health. To learn more, check out Better Nights Ahead, an e-book from CommonHealth. Stay Well!

With questions about this week’s WellNote, contact your campus representative:

Alexandria-Kathy Clement or Najeeb Baha
Annandale-Regina Sanders
Fairfax/College Staff-Angel Mori
Loudoun-Gert Heslin
Manassas-ThuyTien Ngo-Nguyen
Springfield Medical Education Campus (MEC)-Corrine House
Woodbridge-Georgette Harris

Submitted by:
Charlotte Calobrisi, AVP of HR, CCalobrisi@nvcc.edu