A new prescription for pain!
For hospital patients recovering from surgery, sunlight appears to be therapeutic. The discovery was made by investigators at the University of Pittsburg Medical Centre who assigned 89 spinal surgery patients either to rooms that received a lot of natural light or to dim rooms.On the day after surgery, patients in the brighter rooms took significantly less pain medication than patients in darker rooms and they continued to take lower amounts throughout their entire hospital stay. People who were exposed to more sunlight also reported experiencing less stress on questionnaires completed the day after surgery and on the day of discharge. The reason for the link between sunlight and reduced pain may have to do with serotonin, a mood-regulating chemical in the brain. When levels of serotonin are too low, depression can occur and depression increases the perception of pain, explains Bruce Rabin, MD, PhD, one of the study’s authors. But sunlight may elevate serotonin levels, he suggests, thereby boosting mood and lessening pain perception. ........................................................ Source: Health and Nutrition, August 2004
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