You may have noticed particular bright night skies recently as we experienced a full moon. NASA reported the event, called the Wolf Moon, began Thursday afternoon and ended Saturday morning. But did you notice any changes in your personal sleep patterns in the days leading up to the full moon?
As the latest full moon was beginning, a new study was released suggesting that a full moon can affect human sleep cycles. Researchers confirmed that the nights leading up to a full moon have more natural light available after the sun goes down.
The new research found that in the days before a full moon, people go to sleep later in the evening and sleep for shorter periods of time.
The moon takes 27. 3 days to go around the Earth, but it takes 29. 5 days to complete a full cycle from New Moon to New Moon. The new study measured the sleep patterns of test subjects as the moon progressed through at least one whole 29. 5—day cycle. Some subjects were tested through two moon cycles.
On average, people involved in the study slept about 52 minutes less on nights before a full moon. They also went to bed about 30 minutes later. The research showed that people had the latest bedtime and the shortest amount of sleep during the nights that were three to five days before a full moon.
The study involved 98 individuals living in three different indigenous communities in Argentina. Each local community had different access to electricity. One countryside community had no electricity access, while a second had only limited access. A third community was in a more populated area and had full access to electricity.
The scientists say further research is needed to help explain other possible causes for the changes in sleep patterns in the test subjects. Such causes could involve biological differences in individuals or social patterns within communities.
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