"This publication is with permission of the rights owner freely accessible due to an Alliance licence and a national licence (funded by the DFG, German Research Foundation) respectively." Hubalek, Sylvia; Brink, Mark; Schierz, Christoph: Office workers' daily exposure to light and its influence on sleep quality and mood
URN:urn:nbn:de:gbv:ilm1-2014210273 To study the amount of light entering the eye and its effects on office workers, measurements were taken from 23 office workers over a period of seven consecutive days. Two parameters of visible light were recorded: (i) illuminance and (ii) irradiance of the blue spectral component. Every evening before going to bed, a questionnaire had to be filled out, containing scales relating to the mood dimensions of pleasure and arousal, questions about the previous night's sleep and a rough time table with information about the person's whereabouts during the day. The exposure to light on workdays is regular but it varies strongly on days off. No evidence could be provided for the influence of age, sex or seasonal affective disorder (SAD) scores on the daily exposure to light of office workers. The amount of light entering the eye during the day appears to have a positive impact on sleep quality the following night. Pleasure and arousal were not significantly associated with daily light exposure.
Data on the exposure of the human eye to light are essential for investigation into the interaction of light with man. According to present knowledge, two different spectral sensitivities of the visible irradiance are relevant: (1) the spectral luminous efficiency function for vision and (2) the action spectrum for melatonin suppression, also used for other non-visual biological effects. We developed a device called LuxBlick to measure and record both quantities. It consists of two light sensors that are fixed on the wearer’s head, and a control unit and data recording mini-computer worn in a bag around the waist. Real-time data are accessible to those wearing the device. Suitable to be worn in everyday life, the parts at the head are of low mass at the head and inconspicuous.
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