Day and night light exposure are associated with psychiatric disorders: an objective light study in >85,000 people
Open accessAbstract
Circadian rhythm disturbance is a common feature of many psychiatric disorders. Light is the primary input to the circadian clock, with daytime light strengthening rhythms and night-time light disrupting them. Therefore, habitual light exposure may represent an environmental risk factor for susceptibility to psychiatric disorders. We performed the largest to date cross-sectional analysis of light, sleep, physical activity, and mental health (n = 86,772 adults; aged 62.4 ± 7.4 years; 57% women). We examined the independent association of day and night-time light exposure with covariate-adjusted risk for psychiatric disorders and self-harm. Greater night-time light exposure was associated with increased risk for major depressive disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, PTSD, psychosis, bipolar disorder, and self-harm behavior. Independent of night-time light exposure, greater daytime light exposure was associated with reduced risk for major depressive disorder, PTSD, psychosis, and self-harm behavior. These findings were robust to adjustment for sociodemographics, photoperiod, physical activity, sleep quality, and cardiometabolic health. Avoiding light at night and seeking light during the day may be a simple and effective, non-pharmacological means of broadly improving mental health. Burns et al. explored the association between day and night-time light exposure and the risk for psychiatric disorders using a large sample of adults from the UK Biobank dataset.
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Suboptimal light exposure has been linked to poor health outcomes, including mood disorders, cognitive decline, fatigue, and sleep disorders.
“In contrast, 'suboptimal' light exposure has been linked to poor health outcomes, including mood disorders, cognitive decline, fatigue, and sleep disorders [7, 8].”
From Ocular light exposure interventions for sleep, circadian rhythms, rest-activity cycles, mood, and cognitive function in older adults: An Overview of Cochrane and non-Cochrane Systematic Reviews (2025) · cites this paper as [7]
The Abstract reports that greater night-time light exposure was associated with higher risk of major depressive disorder and other psychiatric disorders, while greater daytime light exposure was associated with lower risk of several such outcomes. The paper does not report cognitive decline, fatigue, or sleep disorders as outcomes of its light-exposure analysis; sleep quality was an adjustment variable. Those parts of the citing sentence are not supported by this source. (LLM, conf=0.87)
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- Authors
- Burns, A. C., Windred, D. P., Rutter, M. K., Olivier, P., Vetter, C., Saxena, R., Lane, J. M., Phillips, A. J. K., & Cain, S. W.
- Affiliations
- Broad Institute (US)
- Monash University (AU)
- Manchester Academic Health Science Centre (GB)
- University of Colorado Boulder (US)
- Corresponding author
- Burns, Angus C.
- ORCID
- Venue
- Nature Mental Health
- Published
- 2023-10-09
- Volume
- 1
- Issue
- 11
- Pages
- 853-862
- ISSN
- 2731-6076 (ISSN-L)
- OpenAlex
- W4387451477
- Cited by
- 123
- References
- 56
- Citations by year
- 2026: 50 · 2025: 44 · 2024: 27 · 2023: 2
- FWCI
- 18.36
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- hybrid
- doi.org
- Licence
- Locations
- Nature Mental Health (publishedVersion, other-oa)
- Research Explorer (The University of Manchester) (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- Funders
- Department of Health | National Health and Medical Research Council (GNT1183472)
- Australian Government Research Training Program Ph.D. scholarship.
- Topics
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Endocrine and Autonomic Systems › Circadian rhythm and melatonin
- Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Global and Planetary Change › Impact of Light on Environment and Health
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Sleep and related disorders
- Keywords
- nocturnal light exposure, circadian rhythm disruption, mental illness, major depressive disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, psychosis, bipolar disorder, self-harm, mental health, sleep, physical activity, cardiometabolic health
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