A Chiropractor’s Take On Blocking Blue Light: How Better Sleep Improves Health and Recovery

DR. HALULKO SPEAKS OUT ON BLUE LIGHT BLOCKING AND WELLNESS

As a chiropractor in Traverse City, I have treated many patients suffering from a variety of musculoskeletal conditions. They come in and visit our clinic at River of Life Chiropractic and Wellness to receive spinal adjustments, as well as soft tissue manipulation known as Active Release Technique (ART) that help ease problems such as neck pain, back pain, sciatic pain, headaches, stiff joints, and digestive problems.

I have been passionate about health and wellness for years, which is why I gravitated towards chiropractic care. At River of Life, we are able to help patients with their pain: we restore their range of motion, we deal with subluxations, and we spot problems before they can develop into something inconvenient.

But as a chiropractor, it is also part of my job to make sure our clients are making the right lifestyle decisions. We want clients to embrace healthier choices. In fact, many musculoskeletal issues stem from a lack of proper diet, exercise, and sleep.

HEALTHY CHOICES LEAD TO HEALTHIER OUTCOMES

You can prevent a lot of aches and pains by simply taking care of your body. Today we will be focusing on the importance of sleep.

As we all know, sleeping is a basic human need. Just like eating, drinking, and breathing, we cannot survive without it. But beyond that, it is also a vital part of the foundation for good health and well-being throughout your lifetime.

As we all know, sleeping is a basic human need. Just like eating, drinking, and breathing, we cannot survive without it. But beyond that, it is also a vital part of the foundation for good health and well-being throughout your lifetime.

It goes without saying that sleep deficiency can lead to physical and mental health problems. It makes you more susceptible to injuries because of your reduced awareness. At work, you lose productivity because your mind can’t focus on the task at hand.

Sleep deprivation affects many adults all over the world—and for a number of reasons. It usually involves stress, unpredictable work schedules, or other factors such as a sleep disorder. Sleep deprivation can also happen when you sleep at the wrong time of day. This means you are out of sync with your body’s natural clock.

The quality of sleep is also important. You can stay in bed for a long time and still not get enough sleep simply because you didn’t sleep well.

The way you feel while you’re awake largely depends on what happens while you are sleeping. During sleep, the body is working to support healthy brain function and physical health. Ongoing sleep deficiency can raise your risk for chronic health problems. It also affects how well you think, react, work, learn, and get along with others.

SLEEP & THE BRAIN

But it doesn’t just affect the brain. Sleep is very important when it comes to healing and repairing the body—the blood vessels and the heart, for instance. Ongoing sleep deficiency is linked to an increased risk of heart disease, high blood pressure, diabetes, and stroke. It also increases the risk of obesity.

Your immune system relies on sleep to stay healthy. Though it normally defends the body against foreign or harmful substances, when the body is sleep-deprived, it may have trouble fighting common infections.

Sleep deprivation can cause problems that affect the entire body. The best way to make sure you get enough sleep is to make sure you sleep at regular times every night. This will condition the body to start ‘winding down’ at the right time, consistently. This means when you turn off the lights and go to bed, you are guaranteed to feel sleepy. Make sure you read this article that was published earlier, on “How To Fall Asleep Faster”.

But setting your body clock and following through is easier said than done. There are other factors that might affect the quality of your sleep.

BLOCK THE BLUE FOR A BETTER YOU

Blue light emission, for example, has been shown to suppress the production of the sleep hormone melatonin more than any other type of light. Artificial light such as fluorescent bulbs and light-emitting diodes or LEDs may be more energy-efficient, but they can have a negative impact on sleep. These lights interrupt normal sleep patterns, disrupting the body’s biological clock, also known as the circadian rhythm.

Circadian rhythms control many physiological processes. It works in rhythms that are set by the amount of light and dark that the body is exposed to. When artificial light is added to a human’s day, the body’s natural rhythms become confused by the amount of light received by the eyes. It becomes hard to tell what time of day it is, and so the body doesn’t know when to get ready for sleep.

To get better sleep, you can stop using artificial light altogether—but this is not a very practical solution, given that artificial light is used everywhere. The most reasonable solution is to simply turn off the lights before going to bed, and also avoid any exposure to blue light 30 to 60 minutes prior to bed. This includes the TV, your smartphone, or any gadget that emits artificial light. You want the environment to be dimly lit so your body can start producing melatonin.

WHY WEARING SWANNIES CAN HELP YOU GET MORE QUALITY SLEEP

Additionally, you can start wearing blue light blocking glasses to reduce your exposure to these harmful lights. Blue light isn’t all bad. But reducing your exposure before going to bed can improve your quality of sleep drastically. You will wake up feeling healthier overall.

The glasses can be worn at work, during the day, and especially before bed to reduce the negative effects of blue light on your eyes. These special glasses reduce eye strain, which is important if you are spending a lot of time staring at a screen.

At River of Life Chiropractic and Wellness in Traverse City, we recommend a combination of regular adjustments and wearing blue light blocking glasses to improve your sleep significantly. Spinal adjustments relax your body and can remove the pain that may be preventing you from getting a good night’s sleep.

Regular chiropractic adjustments, when paired with blue light blocking, can not only help you sleep but also aid in improving your overall health.