If you've ever wondered why you sleep so incredibly well when you are on vacation by the sea, it's not a coincidence. In fact, some coastal populations are among the healthiest in the world, especially in the Mediterranean, which is known as a blue zone for its natural lighting and wellbeing benefits.
While your body's internal body clock works to regulate your sleep-wake cycle, it's heavily influenced by exposure to natural light, with cortisol hormones released in the morning to facilitate easier waking.
That increased alertness, especially around natural light, is exactly why, as the resident Sleep Editor here at Homes & Gardens, I recommend using the Govee Smart Light Bulbs, available at Amazon, in your bedroom space, to cleverly mimic the most beneficial morning sunshine, and help you to wake naturally without grogginess.
What Is the Circadian Rhythm Lighting Tip?
It's a simple and budget-friendly switch to help you sleep better and ensure you wake refreshed, rather than lethargic.
Blue zones was first coined by demographer Michel Poulain and physician Giovanni Mario Pes, who were investigating why some populations live longer than others in Sardinia.
Journalist Dan Buettner went on to collaborate with them in his own worldwide explorations on longevity and authored The Blue Zones: 9 Lessons for Living Longer From the People Who've Lived the Longest, available at Amazon.
While there is no 'magic bullet', as noted in the paper published in the National Library of Medicine, those living in coastal areas often enjoy increased time in natural sunlight.
This, of course, helps to naturally regulate our circadian rhythms and, therefore, sleep cycles. Melatonin is released in the body towards bedtime (and as it gets dark) to help you drift off. As morning nears, the cortisol hormone is released to aid in easier waking. That's why having more natural light aids waking.
To easily achieve this cortisol-regulating benefit in your sleep environment, regardless of your location, you can switch your normal bedside lamp bulbs for smart ones and alter the hue to something more beneficial. Combined with the smart tech that allows you to program it to turn on automatically, you will be able to enjoy reduced grogginess every morning.
Smart bulbs, such as the Govee Smart Light Bulbs, available at Amazon, come complete with a sunrise setting timer. Filling your room with gradually brightening light in the morning is a scientifically proven way to wake up slowly and naturally, leaving you feeling more refreshed.
What the Sleep Experts Say
Dr. Andrew Gall is an Associate Professor of Psychology at Hope College and a Neuroscientist who studies the neural mechanisms and functions of sleep, including how light affects circadian rhythms.
He explains, 'Smart bulbs can be a useful tool to improve sleep because they act as a "zeitgeber," (a time cue) to help you wake up naturally with the sunlight. This is especially important because our sleep-wake patterns need to be aligned with the sun and darkness to have maximal benefits for us.'
Restorative sleep is vital to long-term wellbeing as it allows the body to do important healing work overnight, removing or fixing damaged cells, reducing inflammation, processing memories, and much more.
Dr Gall advises that using other forms of traditional alarm clocks that wake us up at a specific, allotted time do so without regard for the sleep state we are in.
'We experience the most benefits of sleep when we wake up directly from rapid eye movement (REM) sleep, because our brain activity during REM sleep is more similar to our brain activity during wakefulness,' continues Dr. Gall. 'You may have noticed that sometimes when your alarm clock goes off, you immediately hit snooze and feel very groggy.
'This is likely because your traditional alarm clock woke you up during non-rapid eye movement (NREM) sleep, which is a time when our brain activity mismatches that during wakefulness.'
This is where using a smart bulb comes in handy: The technology can be used to wake you gently, by providing a less jarring cue that cleverly aligns with and reflects the rising sun.
'We will then wake up naturally and refreshed, rather than artificially and groggy,' adds Dr. Gall, harnessing all the proven benefits of the Dutch Method for sleep, but without having to actually leave your curtains and blinds open.
How to Try the Circadian Lighting Hack
With the Govee Smart Light Bulbs, available at Amazon, trying the Circadian Lighting Hack for yourself is easy, as it comes with a Sunrise & Sunset mode, so you can set your bulbs to brighten when you wake up, and gradually dim in the evening to help you to fall asleep fast.
'It is important that the smart bulb is closely aligned with the time the sun comes up,' advises Dr. Gall. 'It is also important to go to bed sufficiently early, and at the same time each night, to meet your sleep need, and to align your internal clock – set by your body's circadian rhythms – with the sun.
'Our bodies will get maximal benefit if we go to bed at the same time each night, get enough sleep to meet our own body's sleep need, and wake up naturally when the sun rises.'
Additionally, he says, it's critical to get outside in the morning, to soak in some of the natural light's rays, help you to become a morning person, and provide you with benefits for your day ahead.
'Even better, if you go for a morning walk, you will get the benefit of exercise, natural light, and add a good, healthy breakfast, and you're making some important changes to benefit your health in the long run!'
More to Shop
Using a smart lightbulb isn't the only way to mimic the morning sunlight or make the most of it naturally. Shop my edit of sleep essentials to ensure you wake feeling refreshed, whatever the weather and time of year.
All prices were correct at the time of publication.
This alarm clock wakes you up with natural light and makes it easy to establish a healthy screen-free morning and evening routine, with a 15 to 90 minute sunset/sunrise duration, and a choice of 15 sleep/wake sounds.
Prefer to sleep with your curtains open, but resent being woken up by bright sunlight on weekends? This face-hugging eye mask provides total darkness for guaranteed sleep-ins.
This Phillips wake-up light can be used as a bedside reading lamp with 20 brightness settings, and features a whole host of smart features, such as FM radio, tap snooze, and an automatic dimmable display.
I love a spritz of this on my pillow before bedtime to help me drift off. It's formulated with natural essential oils, with notes of lavender, chamomile, and patchouli to support better, deeper rest.
This design-forward sunrise alarm clock can easily be adjusted according to your own habits, and features a snooze mode, a gradual 12-level volume adjustment, and a nine-minute power nap function.
This book takes a deep dive into how to use light to improve sleep and reveals extensive scientific evidence establishing the risks of blue-rich artificial light at night and the way it affects how we sleep.
Meet the Expert
You may now know how to harness natural light in the mornings, but do you know how to design your bedroom for sensational sleep?
