LIGHT POLLUTION's IMPACT ON ENERGY USAGE

IMPACT ON ENERGY USAGE

The human race uses millions and millions of barrels of oil or natural gas to empower our globalizing landscape, our 24 hour society, our infatuation with beautiful objects that brings about city beautification by addictively consuming ridiculous amounts of resources to power that deadly desire.


Energy conservation advocates contend that light pollution must be addressed by changing the habits of society, so that lighting is used more efficiently, with less waste and less creation of unwanted or unneeded illumination. The case against light pollution is strengthened by a range of studies on health effects, suggesting that excess light may induce loss in visual acuity, hypertension, headaches and increased incidence of carcinoma. Several industry groups also recognize light pollution as an important issue. For example, the Institution of Lightin Engineers in the United Kingdom provides its members information about light pollution, the problems it causes, and how to reduce its impact.

Since not everyone is irritated by the same lighting sources, it is common for one person's light "pollution" to be light that is desirable for another. One example of this is found in advertising, when an advertiser wishes for particular lights to be bright and visible, even though others find them annoying. Other types of light pollution are more certain. For instance, light that accidentally crosses a property boundary and annoys a neighbor is generally wasted and pollutive light.

Disputes are still common when deciding appropriate action, and differences in opinion over what light is considered reasonable, and who should be responsible, mean that negotiation must sometimes take place between parties. Where objective measurement is desired, light levels can be quantified by field measurement or mathematical modeling, with results typically displayed as an isophote map or light contour map. Authorities have also taken a variety of measures for dealing with light pollution, depending on the interests, beliefs and understandings of the society involved. Measures range from doing nothing at all, to implementing strict laws and regulations about how lights may be installed and used.

What are the adverse health effects caused by LP? - ETC effects

What are the adverse health effects caused by LP? - ETC effects


Fluorescent lighting, common in schools and in the workplace, also have unexpected effects on the human body and spirit.

Fluorescent lighting is bright and intrusive lighting that can have harmful affects when one is exposed to for eight hours a day five days a week.

Fluorescent lighting has been linked to work-related stress and high blood pressure. Studies show that those who are exposed to fluorescent lighting for extended periods of time on average measure at least 8 points higher in blood pressure than those who are not.

Fluorescent lighting has been linked to depression and vision problems in school age children as well.

Exposure to light at inappropriate times of the day can lead to conditions such as near-sightedness and sleep deprivation. Disrupting the normal sleeping cycle affects the natural body functions and productions that occur during REM. Such functions include the production of antibodies, the distribution of blood through out the body and the production of melatonin. Being exposed to artificial light at night has unfavorable psychological effects on the body which can weaken the body’s immunity system and disrupt the natural chemistries of blood and urine. Melatonin protects the body against hormone based cancers, most commonly, breast cancer. Disruptions in the production of melatonin occur when sleeping in a room that sits in the path of a street light or is constantly having cars beam lights in the window.

Studies also show that those children who sleep with night lights are more likely to develop vision problems and sleep deprivation than those who sleep in darkness.

Presently, excessive lighting has not shown any positive effects on humans or the environment. In fact more and more scientists and health care professionals are becoming aware of the dangerous affects light pollution has on humans. Because light pollution is a fairly new problem, the long term affects of light pollution are still unknown. Unfortunately, society has learned to depend on artificial light and that dependence would take years of struggle to overcome. Starry Night Lights can help you make informed decisions about which light fixtures or light bulbs to purchase and where and when to use them. Your home can be safely lit and still be light pollution free with the right combinations of lights. However, until more light is shed on how dangerous light pollution can be in the long run, it is better to do the best we can to make sure we have a good, dark night's sleep.


great... guys we really DO need to sleep! without the comp light on! ARGHHH

What are the adverse health effects caused by LP? - Premature Babies

Adverse Effects on human health - Premature Babies




Constant exposure to artificial hospital lighting may damage the development of premature babies' biological clocks as research suggests.



Tests showed exposing baby mice to constant light keeps the master biological clock in their brains from developing properly.



Researchers said this could contribute to an increased risk of mood disorders, such as depression.



The Vanderbilt University study appears in the journal Pediatric Research.



The researchers say their findings suggest special care baby units should try to minimise a baby's exposure to artificial lighting - possibly by using a day/night cycle.



Each year about 14 million premature babies are born worldwide, and many are exposed to artificial lighting in hospitals.





Synchronized cells


Previous research has found infants from neonatal units with cyclic lighting tend to begin sleeping through the night more quickly, and gain weight faster than those from units with constant lighting.


In all mammals the master biological clock is located in an area of the brain called the suprachiasmatic nuclei (SCN).


It influences the activity of many organs, including the brain, heart, liver and lungs and regulates the daily activity cycles known as circadian rhythms.


The SCN is filled with special clock neuron cells whose activity is synchronized follow the 24-hour day/night cycle.


The Vanderbilt team had already shown SCN neurons in adult mice begin drifting out of a phase after the animals were exposed to constant light for about five months.


This is accompanied by a breakdown in their ability to maintain their normal nocturnal cycle.


Telltale glow


The latest study found that newborn mice were even more vulnerable to the effects of constant light than the adults.


The Vanderbilt team used genetically modified mice whose clock neurons produced a bright glow when active.


They found neurons in baby mice exposed to the normal light cycle quickly became synchronised.


In contrast, neurons in those animals exposed to constant light were unable to maintain coherent rhythms.


However, when these animals were then exposed to the day/night cycle of light their neurons rapidly fell into line.


The scientists then exposed some mice to constant light for a much longer period - and found that two-thirds were unable to establish a regular pattern of activity on an exercise wheel.


Conversely, newborn mice who spent their first three weeks in a day/night cycle were able to maintain their normal daily rhythm when later exposed to constant light.


Lead researcher Dr Douglas McMahon said more work was needed to establish whether disruption of a baby's biological clock could increase their vulnerability to mood disorders.


"All this is speculative at this point. But, certainly the data would indicate that human infants benefit from the synchronizing effect of a normal light cycle."


Efforts underway



Professor Andrew Shennan, an expert in obstetrics for Tommy's, the baby charity, said the link between light exposure and its effects on mood and behaviour were quite firmly established.


"Currently, any babies who are admitted to a special care baby unit are going to be exposed to incredibly harsh lighting to facilitate care, at anytime day or night that it is needed.


"Many units now try and reduce adverse stimuli including lighting for periods during the day and at night. "As a result of this research the potential benefit of reducing unnecessary light exposure must now be investigated, as it would seem that there is a strong possibility that this could improve the development of the body clock."


Newborn mice provide a good model for premature human infants because baby mice are born at an earlier stage of development than humans, a stage closely equivalent to that of premature babies.


OK GUYS! LOOK @ THE TIME! WE ALL GONNA HAVE PREMATURE CHILDREN! ARGHH

What are the adverse health effects caused by LP? - Cancer

Adverse Effects on human health - Cancer/ Breast Cancer
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Night life under electric lighting may cause serious behavioral disorders and physical diseases including cancer, according to a specialist team led of the Professor N.N. Pertov Scientific Research Institute of Oncology, Russian Ministry of Healthcare, and Petrozavodsk State University, who have been investigating the effects of night-time illumination on people's health for several years.
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The researchers summarized findings of their own investigations and extensive foreign experience, medical statistics and data of experiments carried out on rodents. Permanent bright light suppresses synthesis of melatonin, the hormone that impacts the endocrine system work and prevents cancerous growth formation and development.
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Light pollution has become almost an integral part of contemporary life. Bright electric light pours on the people who have to work on night shifts, pilots and stewardesses, who often travel from one time zone to another, and inhabitants of the North (where white nights take place in summer). Normal functioning in humans requires regular changing of day and night, light and darkness. In the dark, the epiphysis (the pineal gland) synthesizes the melatonin hormone, but the influence of light at night hours suppresses this synthesis. Melatonin is also a well-known biological blocker of malignant neoplasms.
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The more intense the night-time light, the stronger it suppresses the melatonin synthesis. Some people are more sensitive to night-time illumination's action than others, for example, women are generally more sensitive than men. Light pollution can cause premature reproductive system ageing, and increase the risk of breast cancer and large intestine cancer in women. Night workers and pilots more often suffer from large intestine or rectal cancers. In addition, irregular light can causes sleep disturbance, gastrointestinal and cardiovascular diseases, metabolic derangements and, possibly increase the likelihood of developing diabetes.
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This is confirmed by results of experiments with rodents, which react to permanent light in the same way as humans do. Cancerous growth occurs more often with mice and rats under permanent light conditions, being more susceptible to chemical carcinogens and malignant cell inoculation. Mice suffering from cancer die more often in light pollution conditions than in controls with undisturbed day and night. A similar phenomenon is also recorded by clinicians: according to some observations, patients with large intestine cancer who retain the 24-hour rhythm of activity live longer than the patients with disrupted rhythms.
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Cancerous growth behavior is closely connected with the melatonin concentration in the serum. It usually changes depending on the time of the day, but with oncological patients and laboratory animals, the diurnal rhythm of melatonin in serum is significantly disrupted, and its concentration is below normal.
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GREAT, LOOK @ THE TIME, WE ARE ALL GONNA GET BC!