A study published in the journal of the European Association for the Study of Diabetes (Diabetologia) will support better management of outdoor artificial light at night (LAN) and actions such as using black-out curtains in bedrooms. Yu and colleagues determined that LAN “is associated with impaired blood glucose control and an increased risk of diabetes. . . . The intensity of urban light pollution has increased to the point that it not only affects residents of big cities, but also those in distant areas such as suburbs and forest parks that may be hundreds of kilometres from the light source. . . . A study of night-shift workers found that those exposed to brighter LAN were more likely to have disrupted circadian rhythms, as well as a greater risk of coronary heart disease. Other research found that higher LAN exposure was associated with a 13% and 22% increase in the likelihood of being overweight and obese, respectively, while exposure to LAN in the bedroom was reported to be positively associated with the development of diabetes in elderly people.”
“New Study Reveals That Exposure to Outdoor Artificial Light at Night is Associated with an Increased Risk of Diabetes.” 2022. Press release, Diabetologia, https://diabetologia-journal.org/2022/11/15/new-study-reveals-that-exposure-to-outdoor-artificial-light-at-night-is-associated-with-an-increased-risk-of-diabetes/