Sneaky Places At Home Hiding Toxic PFAS Forever Chemicals

By now you’ve heard about PFAS chemicals - the “forever chemicals” most notably associated with non-stick cookware. Its also with plastics pollution and endocrine dysfunction.

But PFAS can be found in many common household items and it is linked to many chronic diseases down the line.

If you have infants or toddlers at home, it's especially important to consider the chemicals that could be in your carpet. For example, rugs are a major source of PFAS exposure for little ones who are likely to put their hands in their mouths after touching the material. 

What are PFAS?

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS, is a class of thousands of man-made substances that are common in everyday objects. Peer-reviewed studies have linked them to some cancers, decreased fertility, thyroid disease, and developmental delays, among other health issues.  linked to serious health issues like testicular and kidney cancer, liver damage, thyroid disease, and more, are also hiding out in some pretty surprising places in our everyday lives.

Thanks to their super-strong carbon–fluorine (C–F) bonds, PFAS are extremely stable, making them persistent and resistant to degradation.

PFAS last for decades without breaking down, earning them the "forever chemicals" nickname.

Sneaky places at home that hide PFAS

It may be impossible to completely avoid PFAS, but there are a few simple ways to reduce your exposure. By tackling some of the sneaky places they hide:

Wall paint: One study at Duke University last year found PFAS in six of 10 popular paint brands sampled. The study also determined that in some brands there was off-gassing of PFAS, which reduces the overall concentration of the chemical in the paint on the wall, but disperses it into the air, where it can be inhaled.

Food packaging: PFAS were developed in the 1940s to resist heat, grease, stains, and water. That means they've ended up in a lot of food packaging. That includes pizza boxes, microwave popcorn bags, some wrappers, and grease-resistant paper.

A 2019 study found that people had lower PFAS levels in their blood after eating at home, and higher levels after eating fast food or at restaurants.

Nonstick cookware: The coating used in nonstick cookware usually contains PFAS, and they can easily leach into your food at high heat and once the coating gets scratched.

In fact, overheating nonstick cookware at 570°F or higher leads to the release of harmful chemicals that can cause an illness called "Teflon flu," or polymer fume fever.

In makeup: Cosmetics that are smoothing, long-wear, or waterproof are the ones most likely to contain PFAS chemicals. Without it, your mascara would run. It's a good idea to read ingredient labels (look for any ingredients with ‘fluoro’ in the name).

The Green Science Policy Institute keeps a list of PFAS-free products, including cosmetics brands.

In dental floss: for years, dental floss brands have used PFAS chemicals, which is concerning since it’s a product that goes in our mouths! A 2019 study found that women who flossed with Oral-B Glide had higher levels of a specific PFAS chemical in their blood than women who didn’t use that particular floss. Make sure your floss is PFAS-free!

Soft contact lenses: a random sampling of 18 popular brands of soft lenses sent to an Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)-certified lab all tested positive for PFAS, short for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances.

Menstrual care products: Mamavation and Environmental Health News conducted a study of PFAS in menstrual care products, including tampons, pads, sanitary napkins and period underwear, and found most of them contaminated to one degree or another with the forever chemicals.

Clothing and textiles: One of the ways fabrics become water resistant is by using PFAS chemicals! Jackets, raincoats, backpacks, and other outdoor gear are often treated with these chemicals.

These fabrics shed fibers that can travel through the house as dust, eventually getting ingested or inhaled.

These same chemicals are used in stain-resistant treatments for upholstered furniture, carpeting, and even curtains. There’s no easy way to know if your items have been treated, especially if they’re older. When it comes time to replace them, seek out brands that don’t use PFAS chemicals.

House dust: Those floaters in the air you see are made up of many things, including chemicals breaking down from various household products, including PFAS. One study found that certain PFAS chemicals were detected in 97-100% of samples! One straightforward solution is to keep your house as clean as possible. Use a water-damp cloth to remove dust (referred to as wet dusting), is a simple way to lower PFAS exposure in your home. lingers in the air and allows humans to breathe the chemicals into their lungs or ingest them. By cleaning regularly, along with opening windows to allow for airflow and ventilation, you can keep dust levels low in your home and reduce the amount of PFAS you swallow.

Tap water: Communities located near military bases, such as Newburgh, New York, often find their water supplies contaminated with PFAS. The pollution can also affect local fish populations and the people who eat them.

PFAS levels in community tap water in Massachusetts reveals a trend of increasing contamination, with total fluorinated compounds exhibiting a 5- to 320-fold rise over 25 years.

People living near military bases are more vulnerable to water contamination. For example, it emerged through internal U.S. documents obtained by journalist Jon Mitchell for The Japan Times that accidental leaks of PFOS-containing fire extinguishing foam at Kadena Air Base may be linked to the contamination of drinking water on the island.

Cellphones / Fingerprint-resistant smartphone screens: PFAS are used in pretty much anything to make things more resistant to grease and water. The circuit boards, semiconductors, and insulated wiring that use PFAS, as well as the touch screen, which has PFAS coating to resist fingerprints.

What Makes a Safe Light Bulb – The Definitive Guide

Have you ever thought about whether your light bulbs are safe or giving off EMF radiation?

Newer light bulbs that have been developed to be more energy efficient, are actually some of the worst offenders.

Lighting are a big part of indoor spaces, and probably one of the biggest investments you can when you are renovate or making a brand new home. It takes time, energy, and money to decide exactly how you light up your indoor space — and it creates the light environment that you’re going to live in day after day.

Because you turn these on at night, extending your “daylight” hours, the type of light bulb you choose to fit your home in determines the quality of your environment.

Brief history of light bulbs

Thomas Edison is credited with inventing the first light bulb in 1878. They relied on the heat generated by a tungsten wire contained in a glass bulb and were called incandescent light bulbs. They are simple, and also generated heat, which can be useful in cooler climates.

As energy-efficiency considerations arose, however, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) recognised that energy efficient alternatives needed to be made readily available and become the new standard for Americans. It, along with other governments, looked for ways to reduce energy use en masse.

The aim was to accelerate America’s shift from inefficient, dated lighting products to innovative, high-performance products that can save American consumers and business owners money.[r]

On 3 August 2011, the DOE officially announced Philips Electronics North America as the first winner of the L Prize competition with an LED replacement for the 60-watt incandescent bulb.

The $10 million U.S. government prize marked the first government-sponsored technology competition designed to challenge lighting manufacturers to develop high-quality, ultra-efficient solid-state lighting products to replace the common light bulb with energy-saving lighting alternatives.

Philips turned out to be the only official entrant in the competition and the LED bulb retails at $40, far more than people are used to paying for a light bulb. Government support would be crucial to help the LED be competitive in the market. [r]

So this was a big deal. With the backing of government policies and commitment by other governments in the world, traditional light bulbs began to be replaced by a new technology — the light-emitting diode, or LED.

The LED light bulb

the increasingly popular LED bulbs. LED or Light-Emitting Diode bulbs rely on (you guessed it) a diode to produce light. The diode controls the direction of the energy flow. They are illuminated solely by the movement of electrons within a semiconductor material.

An LED contains blue light, a driver, and a fluorescent sheet that covers the blue light by extending the wavelengths producing a more yellowish or orange light. In this way, it is similar to a type of fluorescent light; it can fool your brain into thinking it is a more natural light but does not protect you from the dangers of blue light exposure, especially at night.

There are two primary dangers when it comes to LED light bulbs:

• Exposure to blue light

• Creation of drty electricity (a form of negative EMF) and electromagnetic radiation

The health impact of LEDs

However, research around the health impact of a new lighting technology emerged.

blue light from sources like your phone, laptop, and LED bulbs suppresses melatonin production, the hormone responsible for regulating quality sleep and wakefulness.

Blue light can also induce headaches and migraines, worsening any pain symptoms that you have. It results in eye pain and fatigue, which was commonly called in the 1980s and 1990s as “computer vision syndrome”.

There are countless clinical studies that support the harmful effects of blue light especially for people who prone to headaches or migraine attacks. Researchers have suggested that there is a specific neural pathway from the eyes to the brain—separate from how vision is transmitted—that ultimately causes blue light wavelengths to worsen headache pain and other symptoms.

Some researchers suggest it is the specific wavelength, in and around 480nm, that leads to high discomfort. It creates a pain perception and even enhanced spreading of headache pain across the brain.

Finally, blue light from LEDs can damage your retina.

If you want to learn much more about blue light toxicity, check out these articles:

• Are you living in junk light?

• Study shows light at night increases your risk of type 2 diabetes

• Blue light can cause precocious puberty

CFL Light Bulbs

As mentioned, LEDs are similar to CFL or Compact Fluorescent Light bulbs.

These are even more dangerous, probably the least safe light bulb on the market today. This is because the CFL use an electric current driven through a tube typically containing mercury vapor.

ALL fluorescent light bulbs contain mercury vapor, which emits a lot of UV rays when hit with an electric current. Increased absorption of such UV radiation from CFLs has been linked to a variety of health effects and skin disorders.

One key study showing this direct cause is from 2012 study. Researchers from the State University of New York at Stony Brook showed in a paper that tiny defects in the bulbs can let through UV light that can damage skin cells and lead to cancer. Not one CFL bulb they studied did not have any cracks or defects in the phospor coatings. This meant the bulbs emitted very significant levels of UVC and UVA.

The energy efficient compact fluorescent lights that are commercially available generate radio frequency radiation and ultraviolet radiation, they contain mercury—a known neurotoxin, and they are making some people ill. Instead of promoting these light bulbs governments around the world should be insisting that manufacturers produce light bulbs that are electromagnetically clean and contain no toxic chemicals. — Dr Magda Havas, an expert of EMF radiation, www.weepinitiative.org/LINKEDDOCS/scientific/08_Havas_CFL_SCENIHR.pdf

Last but not least, CFLS produce dirty electricity in your whole-house circuits. Just like LED bulbs, the circuits are not equipped to handle the demand of CFLs, which leads to dirty electricity. This dirty electricity builds up in the wiring of our home flooding it with EMF radiation.

Many people still purchase CFL bulbs for the same reason of energy efficiency and cost. CFL bulbs can provide the same amount of lumens as incandescent light bulbs, using about one quarter of the energy.

incandescent light bulb

To appreciate the difference in lighting, let’s go back to understand what was traditionally used.

60-watt incandescent light bulb is one of the most widely used types of light bulbs by consumers, representing approximately 50% of the domestic incandescent light bulb market.

Although incandescents may not be the most energy-efficient, the safest available lightbulb is the traditional incandescent.

halogen light bulbs

A halogen light bulb is a type of incandescent lamp which uses a halogen gas in order to increase both light output and rated life. These are popular for its moderately high efficiency, quality of light, and high rated life compared to regular incandescent lamps.

How Can You choose the safest light bulb?

Light bulbs are not as innocuous as you might think.

If you have to be indoors and needing light, you don’t want to remain the in dark and shun all lighting sources, including light bulbs, because that can have physical and emotional consequences too.

So what are your options? Try this quick checklist to choose the safest and best light bulb you can and minimize the damaging effects of bad lighting:

• Buy and use traditional incandescent or halogen bulbs. These use traditional heat source to produce a natural warm glow of light.

• If you choose LEDs, choose a warmer-coloured LED bulb. LED-makers are realising the health impacts of too-blue LEDs and racing to come up with warmer-looking alternatives.

• If you have LEDs at home, install them in low-traffic zones. This means you reduce your exposure to toxic LED light, such as walkways, instead of overhead in bedrooms or where you work.

• In high-traffic zones and for light-sensitive tasks (such as sleep), use incandescent or halogen light bulbs. They may not be the most energy efficient, but they will help to reduce the amount of EMF radiation emitted in the spaces that you occupy.     

• Try "blue blocker" or blue-light filtering glasses, but don’t settle for cheap knock offs. TheraSpecs are a great brand, particularly if you already have migraine or another light-sensitive condition.

• Use "night mode" or similar apps that are native settings on your phone and your computer. This can warm the lighting on your device and make it easier on the eyes.

• Turn your phone or computer off at least 2-3 hours before you go to bed.

• Change your light bulbs to warmer tones and colors. Opt for more natural light if possible and avoid/remove fluorescents, if appropriate.

• Give your eyes a break. Look away from your screen at least once every 20 minutes to let your eyes reset. And don’t forget to blink!

• If you must work under an LED, position your desk so that you are next to an open window (at least a crack) and your body can receive full-spectrum light energy. And you can take eye breaks looking out an open window. This is a building biology hack!

References:

1. https://cleantechnica.com/2011/08/04/philips-wins-prestigious-department-of-energy-l-prize/

2. https://www.nationalgeographic.com/culture/article/110803-philips-led-light-bulb-wins-l-prize

3. Tiny defects in CFL light bulbs can let through UV light that can damage skin cells and lead to cancer. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1751-1097.2012.01192.x
   

Must-Watch Documentaries About Toxic Chemicals

Updated 23 July 2024

Embarking on a toxin-free life can be an overwhelming and transformative experience. To help navigate this road, I have found in-depth documentaries to be particularly helpful to understand how these pollutants affect us, including: Documentary films, Multiple Chemical Sensitivity research and lectures, and related eBooks. 

This page is a resource that will help you become an informed consumer.

Living With Multiple Chemical Sensitivities

Toxic chemicals have infiltrated all aspects of modern living — household items, consumer products, electronics, food, food packaging, personal care products, soaps, pharmaceuticals, toys and play mats, and even our water supply.

Imagine having a home that makes you sick. You may make the connections much later to discover how common household items and materials like paint, carpeting, new building materials and insecticides are now your worst enemies. Your bones ache, you’re feverish, you suffer from extreme headaches, disabling fatigue, mental confusion, asthma and nausea.

You realise you are dealing with something called “MCS”, also known as environmental illness, chemical intolerance, and toxicant induced loss of tolerance or TILT.

Are you ill? Or is it your environment that is poisoned?

The longer you stay in your house, the sicker you get but you can’t imagine how or where you’re going to find a safe home. You begin to wonder if you will ever get back to feeling well, and how others respond to your “invisible illness”.

If you have imagined a stronger, more vibrant and happier you, a calm and peaceful home, you are tackling the tasks of living free of toxins. I hope this list is helpful to you and your loved ones to understand the world of MCS.

The Poison in Us All - 2023 (full documentary)

“The Poison in Us All,” a documentary by Bloomberg Investigates, explores the origins of per- and polyfluoroalkyl chemicals (PFAS) or “forever chemicals,” and how they are putting our lives and the lives of future generations at risk.

Rates of cancer diagnosis in children are increasing in Minnesota, USA, which is where chemical company 3M’s global headquarters are located. As far back as the 1960s, the company has been dumping PFAS chemicals in the surrounding areas.

Minnesota sued 3M for the damage that it has caused to the state’s natural resources, and in 2018, the company was ordered to pay $850 million for contaminating the state’s water supply for decades.

The US EPA now recognizes more than 14,000 different chemical structures as PFAS.

Homesick - 2013 (full documentary)

Director Susan Abod hits the road to learn whether other people with MCS are finding safe housing. On her journey to the Southwestern United States, Susan meets people from all walks of life. Their living quarters range from a house on stilts to tents and a teepee.

Funny, You Don't Look Sick: An Autobiography of an Illness

Director Susan Abod also made another film about MCS.

I made a film, the first documentary I made. called "Funny, You Don't Look Sick: An Autobiography of an Illness" was basically about the, you know, having this illness. And--and I took people on a tour through my house and said, 'Well, it looks like a normal place. But you know, there's no carpeting, there's radiant heat, there's no gas stove, there's no paint, nobody smokes in the building. So when I was done with that film, and you know, this was before email, it showed in 1995. And we-- it wound up going to a lot of support groups. And it was by word of mouth or newsletter or something like that. Then it dawned on me that I had this access to--in Boston, there was the American with Disabilities Act, had an arts mini grant available, and I was starting to have trouble with my housing.

I came up with the idea, how to meet others. I mean, simply what you said. And the--a film would be a great way to do it since I didn't have the resources, if I could get money in order to make my van accessible, money to hire a camera woman. So that's what I did. And we only had paper newsletters. And that's how I did it, from phone contact to phone contact to build up a tour of people to talk to. And that's how I did it. — Susan Abod, from podcast interview https://www.chemicalsensitivitypodcast.org/1970633/11732992

stink! - 2015 (Full Documentary)

STINK! a 2015 American documentary film directed by Jon J. Whelan. The film explores why there are toxins and carcinogens legally hidden in American consumer products.Award-winning film on dangerous chemical ingredients hidden in everyday products. The New York Times says, "Jon Stewart...would probably approve of ‘Stink!’” Entertaining, enlightening, witty, and at times absurd, you’ll never smell the same after Stink!”.

Addicted to Plastic - 2018 (Full Documentary)

ADDICTED TO PLASTIC is a point-of-view style documentary that encompasses three years of filming in 12 countries on 5 continents, including two trips to the middle of the Pacific Ocean where plastic debris accumulates. The film details plastic's path over the last 100 years and provides a wealth of expert interviews on practical and cutting edge solutions to recycling, toxicity and biodegradability.

Your space is your sanctuary

These documentaries expose the harms of toxic chemicals, offering insights from science, healthcare providers, and people suffering with its related health problems.

There are building biologists who have walked this path of recovery — attaining a higher level of calm to their environment and to themselves, and you can take advantage of this knowledge and guidance in creating a healthier and less stressful living and working environment.

17+ Simple Ways to Reduce Home EMF Exposure -- Easy DIY

In our digital, tech-savvy world, electromagnetic frequency (EMF) are the fastest growing environmental toxin. Due to the exponential increase in the use of wireless personal communication devices (eg, mobile or cordless phones and WiFi or Bluetooth-enabled devices) as well as the infrastructure built around us to accommodate it.

We know that lead, air pollution, and other toxic chemicals can damage our health and, while it is gaining momentum, more people are realising the harm EMFs can do. Studies show that wireless and EMF radiation can synergistically increase the effect of these daily toxic exposures because of the ways in which wireless radiation alters the body’s natural functioning.1

What Are EMFs?

Electromagnetic fields (EMFs) are energy fields that surround electrically charged objects and are generated by various sources, such as power lines, electronics, and wireless devices. Exposure to EMFs has been associated with potential health issues such as cancer and reproductive problems. With mobile technology in every aspect of life, including in-school learning, we’re are bombarded by EMFs on a daily basis.

Are you feeling EMF sensitivity? Click here to read about the different types of EMFs and how you may be exposed to them.

How to Minimize Home EMF Exposure (17+ suggestions)

If you’re wondering where to start in this process, below is my personal list of EMF minimizing strategies to consider. I started developing this list with my first child and am constantly adding to it as I find new and fast ways to do the lifestyle hack.

1. Always turn WIFI off at night — you can use an auto-timer.  Keep it away from bedrooms and anywhere near where you spend time in. This is a simple way to reduce your exposure to electromagnetic fields (EMFs) for the crucial hours of rest while you sleep. Better yet, switch back to wired connections.  Before you think you need to open up walls to do this, check out my guide.

2. Deactivate Bluetooth & AirDrop on ALL your devices to decrease the continuous transmission of wireless signals. Many other devices, even air purifiers and refrigerators, that connect to the “Internet of things” and can be wirelessly operated. You don’t need to be in a “surround sound” of wireless radiation all day.

3. Toss the microwave. Avoid using it.

4. Use an electric stove and avoid induction ovens, which emit a large EMF field. The metal cookware itself becomes magnetized, a small amount of current passes from the cookware into your body when you touch the pan.

5. Check if you are using Smart Appliances - TVs, Washing Machines, Air Filters, Fridges, etc. Opt for brands that allow you to disable WiFi.   

6. Replace all dimmer switches in your home with simple on/off switches. Dimmer switches are notorious for producing dirty electricity! This includes ceiling fans. Use the manual switches or chains to adjust the speed level, not dimmer switches.

7. Replace all LED and fluorescent light bulbs (including CFLs) in your home. These types of bulbs emit a large EMF field compared with simple incandescent light bulbs that have none. Go for traditional bulbs such as halogen or incandescent bulbs. If you use a few battery backup LED bulbs around your home for power outages, minimize them as much as possible.

8. Never sleep your phone near your bed, and especially near your head. If you must use it as an alarm clock, put it on airplane mode and place it 5 feet or more from the mattress before turning in.

9. Never use an electric blanket while you sleep. Avoid using an electric heating pad for pain too if at all possible. Use a hot water bottle instead.

10. Choose only wired baby monitors, if you use them. Not many low-EMF versions out there.  Minimize use if at all.  Keep monitors a safe distance away from babies and mothers. Test with with an EMF meter to determine this.

11. Put a barrier between your body and your laptop.

    Keep your laptop away from your lap to reduce direct body contact and exposure to EMFs. If you must, use an EMF blocking pad underneath.

12. Do not carry a cell phone in a pocket of your clothing (this means it’s right against your body) or even your handbag while it is turned on. Did you know that every cellphone comes with a warning about keeping the phone too close to your body? (The iPhone 5 manual says users should keep the phone 10 millimeters away from your ear!) Use an EMF blocking phone case or privacy pouch instead. These KRIA pouches are both beautiful and effective.

13. Reduce hair dryer use.

    Did you know that a hair dryer can emit roughly 40 milligauss to 20,000 milligauss in EMFs? To put this in context, a microwave emits 100-500 milligauss, so using them less frequently can greatly decrease your overall exposure.

14. Avoid Smart Meters.

    Make sure your home does not use a Smart Meter or Smart Water Meter. Call your local power and water company and find out if you have already gotten one and if so, make sure to opt-out and go back to the analog meters. It costs a bit more per month, but it is worth it. If you do not have an option to get rid of your Smart Meter, make or buy an EMF blocking cover for it. Locate beds at least 10 feet away from Smart Meters. 

15. Create a safe sanctuary spot.

    Pick one spot or area in your home that you want to make a total sanctuary, and make sure it checks all the tips on this list. The bedroom is important. It could be where you breastfeed your baby or where you spend much time at work. The single most important space we need to make into an EMF sanctuary is our bedroom - the space where we spend at least a third of our lives.

16. Avoid having any metal in your mouth and body.

    This includes metal braces, permanent wire retainers, titanium implants and silver fillings. Any type of metal in your mouth concentrates EMFs toward your head essentially making it an antenna.

17. Place plugs 6-8 feet away from your bed.

    This is one of the most important things you can do for your health. Try unplugging as many things as you can at night. Power strips can be great for this.

18. Invest in an EMF meter — an affordable consumer meter is a proactive way to measure and monitor EMFs in your environment.

    You can quantify the levels of EMFs emitted by appliances, electronics, or power lines that you may be unawares of. Even if they’re not 100% (variability depends on the sensitivity of the meter). they can help you identify areas with higher EMF concentrations and take steps to reduce potential health risks.

Are you sensitive to EMFs? Do you do anything to reduce your and your family’s EMF exposure?

Even as awareness is growing, 5G is getting rolled out quickly in urban areas. Protecting yourself from this technology takes a bit of planning. Get in touch to find out more about how you can protect yourself at home.

Blue Light Causes Precocious Puberty

A study from Turkey found a direct relationship between blue light exposure and early puberty.

Blue light from LEDs has been linked to precocious puberty. Blue light from electronic devices could contribute to precocious puberty. Whereas previously, humans were mostly exposed to blue light from the sun, these days, we receive blue light exposure at night from our various electronic devices.

This exposure might inhibit the production of melatonin, which could then lead to precocious puberty.

This article highlights it as one of the factors for increased reports of precocious puberty during the lockdowns for the pandemic.

The study

To examine if the rise in reports of precocious puberty has links to the elevated use of blue light emitting devices during the period, researchers from Ankara Bilkent City Hospital and Gazi University in Turkey analyzed the effect of blue light exposure on the testicular tissue of young male rats.

In the study, published in the Frontiers in Endocrinology journal, researchers examined 18 female mice after dividing them into three equal groups:

1. a control group,

2. a group with exposure to blue light for six hours,

3. and a group with blue light exposure for 12 hours.

Blue light triggered signs of early onset puberty

The researchers found these biological changes: reduced melatonin levels, elevated reproductive hormones (estradiol and luteinizing hormone) and physical changes in the ovarian tissues of the rats exposed to blue light, indicating an early onset of puberty.

Those rats exposed to blue light for 12 hours showed signs of cell damage and inflammation in their ovaries.

This study adds to the researchers’ previous work on female rats, which also showed similar effects.

Blue light kills melatonin levels

A study presented on September 16 at the 60th Annual European Society for Paediatric Endocrinology Meeting found exposure to blue light to be associated with decreased levels of melatonin, increased levels of two major reproductive hormones (estradiol and luteinizing hormone), and changes in ovarian tissue that may be indicative of early onset of puberty in females.

In fact, changes occurred even after just six hours of exposure to blue light, which is really not that long. How many of us sit inside LED-lit offices and schools for hours daily?

What is blue light?

Blue light has the shortest wavelength and highest energy in the light spectrum. The strong energy of blue light is what allows it to pass easily through the cornea and lens of our eyes.

Blue light, especially the higher energy visible light from digital devices, has been increasingly recognised as hazardous over the past decade.

While some blue light exposure is inevitable with digital lifestyles, research is growing to show how it is harming our health, from damage to the eyes and disruption to healthy circadian rhythms and hormones.

How blue light affects our biological processes is becoming an increasingly important health issue as humans are exposed to more blue-enriched LED illumination for most of the day, or even at night due to shift work and light pollution in large cities.

Did the pandemic accelerate precocious puberty?

During the pandemic, rates of precocious puberty increased in many countries, sometimes by three-fold. Researchers identified possible reasons for the phenomenon, including sedentary indoor lifestyles.[3]

References

https://www.medicaldaily.com/exposure-blue-light-smartphones-tablets-may-trigger-early-onset-puberty-470876

[3] https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/the-modern-heart/202311/9-ways-the-pandemic-may-have-led-to-precocious-puberty

Lifestyle Tip for a Calm Home - Deep Sleep

Of all the factors contributing to poor health and unsatisfied relationships, stress is perhaps the most overlooked.  

At home, while the stress response can be a helpful biological function, enabling you to respond to daily tasks, demands, and and urgencies, this "lifesaving" reaction ends up doing far more harm than good when continually triggered.

And many of the small everyday details at home can trigger stress: financial worries, clutter, juggling multiple tasks, overwhelming demands, even if they are from our loved ones…

Why you want deep sleep

Deep sleep is the stage of sleep that helps the brain rest and recover, allowing it to replenish energy. keeping hormones balanced. The pituitary gland secretes human growth hormone during this stage, which helps tissues in the body grow and regenerate cells.

The most important thing that a person can do is to set aside more time for sleep. Doing so allows the body to go through more sleep cycles, which makes it possible to have more deep sleep.

Emotional Resilience Reduces the Impact of Stress

Stress is an inescapable part of life; it's how you address it that will determine whether it will translate into health problems later on. The stress reaction should dissipate as quickly as possible after the perceived danger has passed. The scientific term for this is "resilience" — your ability to rapidly return to normal, physically and emotionally, after a stressful event.

Resilient People Are More Tuned in to Bodily Cues of Stress

During times of stress and uncertainty, your resilience is a crucial factor for how well you get through things; “resilience” is the scientific term for your body’s ability to rapidly return to normal or a harmonious equilibrium.

Some people are naturally more resilient than others, and researchers have long pondered the reasons why. One hypothesis is that people who are more resilient have learnt to listen to their body. 

Deep Sleep Builds Emotional Resilience

Exposure to trauma can weaken your emotional resilience. The good news is you can rebuild or improve it as well. One solid strategy that can help build emotional resilience is good sleep. Research shows people who get more deep sleep are less fearful.

The study,6 published in the Journal of Neuroscience, claims to be the first to demonstrate that sound, deep sleep helps buffer against emotional distress, while sleeping poorly raises your risk of experiencing a difficult event as emotionally traumatizing. According to the authors:

"Sleep, and particularly rapid-eye movement sleep (REM), has been implicated in the modulation of neural activity following fear conditioning and extinction in both human and animal studies. It has long been presumed that such effects play a role in the formation and persistence of post-traumatic stress disorder, of which sleep impairments are a core feature … 

In the current study, we employed long-term mobile sleep monitoring and functional neuroimaging (fMRI) to explore whether trait-like variations in sleep patterns … predict subsequent patterns of neural activity during fear learning. 

Our results indicate that higher baseline levels of REM sleep predict reduced fear-related activity in, and connectivity between, the hippocampus, amygdala and ventromedial PFC during conditioning. Additionally, skin-conductance-responses (SCR) were weakly correlated to the activity in the amygdala. 

Conversely, there was no direct correlation between REM sleep and SCR, indicating that REM may only modulate fear acquisition indirectly. In a follow-up experiment, we show that these results are replicable, though to a lesser extent, when measuring sleep over a single night just prior to conditioning. As such, baseline sleep parameters may be able to serve as biomarkers for resilience, or lack thereof, to trauma."

The link between mental health and REM sleep (deep sleep)

Long-standing clinical observations demonstrate that nearly all mood and anxiety disorders co-occur with one or more sleep abnormalities. 

And for Mothers, post partum depression and emotional resilience

Much of “post partum depression” is in fact sleep deprivation that wears at our ability to cope with the range of physical, psychological, and hormonal changes—that occur at least well over the first year of having baby.

For the woman whose nervous system is frozen and suppressed, the intensity of birth (despite being a worthwhile experience to bring their baby earth side) can expose, provoke, or stir up stored survival stress from old trauma resulting in the labels PPA or PPD.

(And if you didn’t know, suicide is the leading cause of death for new moms.)

When I became a mother, the bone-deep exhaustion that comes with it coloured my world. Even though I learnt to function daily with it, my mind battled a continual fog.

There is nothing quite like new parent sleep deprivation. It can be a shock for new parents, and even for second (or third, fourth...) time parents. 

Rather than adding emotional demands on the new, emotionally worn, parent, I believe it is more effective to prioritise space for quality rest.

Create emotional resilience at home with deep sleep

Sleep post-children will probably never be the same. However, recharging looks different as a mom, and I have learnt to expand my definition of rest to include relaxing activities and naps instead of believing that night-time sleep is the only good form of rest. 

Here are some ways to create small spaces to rest at home during the day:

• Comfortable seating areas around the house. If you have a few minutes on the couch, close your eyes and allow them to rest by taking in less light and visual stimulation.

• Uncluttered areas where you can relax into a soothing stretch or yoga pose, such as a child’s pose or legs up the wall. This allows your parasympathetic system to kick in as your breathing slows down.

• Baby’s nap area is not just a space reserved for childish slumber. It’s a vital spot to replenish your nurturing energies. When you do get to nap with your nap, avoid television, radio, and looking at your clock so you aren’t counting the moments to do the chores (or when baby has broken the nap). A cool, dark environment is also optimal for napping, if it is calm for adult as well as children’s sensibilities.

• Create a bedroom sleep sanctuary. Have fun with this and make it a place for rest beyond your wildest dreams.

Does your home help or hinder how well you handle difficult circumstances? How well do you handle the effects of stress and negative emotions? Let’s make space for real deep sleep — for real emotional resilience.