Living · 6 pages · 12 min

Why a dark room is doing less than a schedule

Darkness lets melatonin rise, but only a repeating light pattern sets the clock.

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From the opening

A dark room removes light that would otherwise reach the retina and stimulate the clock. It does less than a schedule because the oscillator is pulled into line by a pattern repeated across days, not by one stretch of darkness. The opening covers light is the main zeitgeber, morning and evening pull opposite ways, and melatonin onset marks the phase.

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Inside

Light is the main zeitgeber
Morning and evening pull opposite ways
Melatonin onset marks the phase
Weaker cues do not replace light
Where the idea stops applying
A distinction worth keeping

Sources

Light to the eyes as the primary circadian zeitgeber
Dim-light melatonin onset as a marker of phase

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Why a dark room is doing less than a schedule

From the opening

Inside

Sources

Also on the desk