ABSTRACT
While human life expectancy may be increasing due to advances in public health, technology and medicine, there are serious questions as to whether the quality of human life can keep up with this increase in longevity. Postindustrial society is experiencing a proliferation of light-related disorders and diseases specifically because our technologically-based society can operate 24 hours per day in illuminated indoor environments. Natural changes in daylight synchronize and help coordinate the body’s circadian rhythms, which determine sleeping and eating patterns, brain wave activity and hormone production. Disturbing circadian rhythms by changing the 24-hour light/dark cycle can lead to jetlag, seasonal affective disorder (SAD), delayed sleep phase syndrome (DSPS), and other abnormalities, and is implicated in various diseases and disorders, including cancer. These effects are particularly pronounced with special needs populations whose physiological systems are already under more pronounced stresses such as children with autism spectrum disorder, older adults with dementia and homeless individuals.
