Every two minutes a woman in the United States is diagnosed with breast cancer. Now some research shows when you're awake and when you sleep could be a factor in getting the disease.
At 11 p.m. pediatric transplant nurse Shawnette Patterson's work day is just beginning. She's up all night helping others but could this shift jeopardize her own health? Recent studies reveal some astonishing findings. "Women who worked night shifts or who were exposed to light in the nighttime hours, when most people are asleep, had an increased risk of breast cancer," says oncologist Catherine Welsh.
With constant exposure to light, night shift workers don't get something our bodies need: darkness. That's when our bodies produce melatonin. Exposing your eyes to light turns off production of melatonin, a hormone that appears to offer protection against cancer cells. "That was very startling to me," says Shawnette.
Sleeping with the TV or light on, or working at your computer late at night can also turn off melatonin. So how important is this chemical? In another study researchers implanted breast cancer cells in rats, then gave them blood from subjects exposed to either darkness or light at night.
Dr. Welsh says, "They found that blood from subjects that had been exposed to bright light at night when it was infused into the breast cancer caused the cancer to grow at a faster rate than the tumors that were exposed to blood from people who had remained in the dark." Dr. Atif Hussein says, "This should make people think how can I reduce the stress and the disorder on my body."
Doctors aren't sure if melatonin supplements will make a difference, but say you can increase melatonin naturally, by making sure your room is as dark as possible when it's time for sleep.
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