Non-Visual Effects of Light on Melatonin, Alertness and Cognitive Performance: Can Blue-Enriched Light Keep Us Alert?
By S. Chellappa, R. Steiner, P. Blattner, P. Oelhafen, Thomas Götz, C. Cajochen. PLoS ONE, 2011
549 citations recorded by the source corpus.
Background Light exposure can cascade numerous effects on the human circadian process via the non-imaging forming system, whose spectral relevance is highest in the short-wavelength range. Here we investigated if commercially available compact fluorescent lamps with different colour temperatures can impact on alertness and cognitive performance. Methods Sixteen healthy young men were studied in a balanced cross-over design with light exposure of 3 different light settings (compact fluorescent lamps with light of 40 lux at 6500K and at 2500K and incandescent lamps of 40 lux at 3000K) during 2 h in the evening. Results Exposure to light at 6500K induced greater melatonin suppression, together with enhanced subjective alertness, well-being and visual comfort. With respect to cognitive performance, light at 6500K led to significantly faster reaction times in tasks associated with sustained attention (Psychomotor Vigilance and GO/NOGO Task), but not in tasks associated with executive function (Paced Visual Serial Addition Task). This cognitive improvement was strongly related with attenuated salivary melatonin levels, particularly for the light condition at 6500K. Conclusions Our findings suggest that the sensitivity of the human alerting and cognitive response to polychromatic light at levels as low as 40 lux, is blue-shifted relative to the three-cone visual photopic system. Thus, the selection of commercially available compact fluorescent lights with different colour temperatures significantly impacts on circadian physiology and cognitive performance at home and in the workplace.
Subfields: Endocrine and Autonomic Systems, Physiology, Plant Science
View Paper: https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/bb2b79cbc25edd5ee64263a692d8aaee34c815dc
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In Endocrine and Autonomic Systems
Citations in the corpus
- Evening exposure to a light-emitting diodes (LED)-backlit computer screen affects circadian physiology and cognitive performance. (2011, background): “Glare and brightness are probed as, respectively, “Does the light have less glare or more?” and “Is the light too dark or too bright?” More glare and brightness are conceived as helping to visualize patterns and/or to read, although high levels of glare and brightness can point to potentially less c”
- Investigating daytime effects of correlated colour temperature on experiences, performance, and arousal (2017, unknown): “Chellappa et al. (2011; 2012), for example, reported alertness-enhancing effects of exposure to blue-enriched light in the late evening employing similar CCT levels as in this study, yet at a lower illuminance level (40 lx at the wall).”
- Light Pollution, Circadian Photoreception, and Melatonin in Vertebrates (2019, unknown): “…K incandescent lamp: 3000 K 0 lx Laboratory MEL in saliva 6500 K: * MEL increase to pre-light exposure levels: 6500 K: 29.5 ± 5% 3000 K: 49 ± 7.6% 2500 K: 42 ± 8.6% (Chellappa et al. 2011) [122] n = 9 M = 6; F = 3 mean age 25.7 ± 3.0 years LED tablet: 38.4 ± 23.2 lx (min–max: 1.5–148.2 lx) 2× 5…”