[Blindtlk] chalking everything up to blindness

[Mike Freeman]

Also, on average, as one ages, one needs less sleep.

Mike

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Lloyd Rasmussen" <lras at sprynet.com>
To: "'Blind Talk Mailing List'" <blindtlk at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Tuesday, May 25, 2010 5:25 PM
Subject: Re: [Blindtlk] chalking everything up to blindness


> But I have also read of studies that indicate that the eyes are not the 
> only
> photosensitive parts of the body, for purposes of entrainment of the
> circadian rhythm.
>
> I don't have as much light perception as I once had.  And last summer,
> before my congestive heart failure was diagnosed, I was getting less and
> less sleep because I couldn't breathe well while lying flat.  Now that I
> have a pacemaker and my heart function is returning to normal, I still get
> less than five hours of sleep on most nights.  I think that being 
> physically
> active during much of your waking hours can help.  Perhaps time-release
> melatonin would help also, but I would look into these other factors 
> rather
> than be over-medicated.
>
> Lloyd Rasmussen, Kensington, Maryland
> Home:  http://lras.home.sprynet.com
> Work:  http://www.loc.gov/nls
>
>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: blindtlk-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:blindtlk-bounces at nfbnet.org] On
>> Behalf Of Robert J Smith
>> Sent: Tuesday, May 25, 2010 10:31 AM
>> To: blindtlk at nfbnet.org
>> Subject: [Blindtlk] chalking everything up to blindness
>>
>> Hi all.  I definitely agree that there is a tendency for health
>> professionals to chalk problems up to blindness, but I believe in the 
>> case
>> of sleep irregularities, there is solid evidence that shows that the 
>> brain
>> actually needs to see light to keep its day and night cycles regulated. 
>> As
>> I understand it, when the brain sees light, the production of melatonin
>> which causes a person to sleep is held in check.  When a person is in the
>> dark, then melatonin is produced, causing sleep.  If a person does not 
>> see
>> light at all, to the brain, the person is then in a perpetual night
>> surrounding so melatonin could be produced at inappropriate times causing
>> drowsiness during those times.  Possibly the taking of Melatonin
>> externally, regulates this a little more.
>>
>> Bob Smith
>>
>
>
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