Real Health podcast: 'If you use an alarm clock, you are under sleep pressure' - sleep expert Professor Andrew Coogan

"In general, we want more light in the morning and especially sunlight, because sunlight is so much brighter than any type of manmade light, our brains don't detect it. We don't see it, but it might be 10 times brighter. But then we want lower lights in the evening and we want less LED lights. The component of light that our body clock is particularly sensitive to is blue light and LED lights actually are very enriched in blue light. Dialling it down in the evening makes quite a bit of sense"

"In general women have more sleep problems. So, insomnia disorder in women, the prevalence can be two times higher in women than men. Now that's maybe not surprising because insomnia is linked with anxiety and depression."

Bright, natural light in the morning strongly supports circadian entrainment because sunlight is far brighter than artificial light. Evening lighting should be dimmer with reduced LED exposure because the circadian system is particularly sensitive to blue wavelengths. LED lighting often contains high levels of blue light, so lowering blue-rich light in the evening helps prepare the body for sleep. Insomnia and other sleep disturbances are more common in women, with prevalence of insomnia disorder possibly about twice that of men. The higher prevalence in women is associated with increased rates of anxiety and depression.

Read at Irish Independent