Scientists at the Salk Institute, US found the effects of light from smartphones and computer on sleep. This finding on disrupted sleep can be helpful in treatments of migraines, insomnia, circadian rhythm disorders, and jet lag. Scientists have uncovered those certain cells of eyes that get affected by the ambient smartphones light.
These lights reset the internal clock of the human body, which is generally known as circadian rhythm disorders. The results were published in the Cell Reports journal and the results state that it needs new ways for treating these diseases. These diseases are related to cognitive dysfunction, obesity, insulin, metabolic syndrome, and cancer.
Human eyes are continuously in touch with artificial light for a day till late at night. This sort of lifestyle can lead to numerous disorders causing an adverse effect on health, said Professor Satchin Panda.
The last layer of eyes is a membrane called retina. Its deepest layer contains a tiny population of light-sensitive cells which works like the digital camera. In case of exposing these layers to intense light, the essential protein known as melanopsin generates within the eyes. This protein conveys information of intensity of light to the brain for maintaining consciousness about the intensity of light. Additionally, this protein has a key role in synchronizing the internal clock of the body under bright light and regulating sleep.
Another protein present in the eyes is arrestins that get affected by the light. This protein stops its activity for some receptors due to its low photosensitive response. The researchers found that the arrestins are much important for the continuous working of melanopsin. Lack of arrestins can fail to maintain their sensitivity under bright light, which results into low regeneration of retinal cells.
