It is now common knowledge that "the most effective way to cure depression is to get in the sun", and in this blog I also wrote a lot about "let's get in the sun and increase serotonin". If you google a little, you will get "solar serotonin".
Serotonin is called "happiness hormone" again, and it is a familiar hormone in the brain that acts on the brain to keep the mind stable.
Serotonin also plays a role in adjusting stress hormones so that they do not increase too much, and it is also related to the stability of the autonomic nerves, and it is a good hormone that also helps prevent aging.
Why does serotonin increase when exposed to the sun?
So why is serotonin secreted when exposed to sunlight? I hadn't really thought about it so I looked it up.
To briefly explain the mechanism by which serotonin is secreted in the sun , tens of thousands of serotonin nerves in the brain stem are activated by the stimulation of sunlight entering the retina of the eye, and the secretion of serotonin is promoted. It seems that it will be done.
I thought it was because it was warm and comfortable in the sun, but it was completely different. I wondered if it had something to do with electromagnetic waves, but it wasn't.
In order to activate the serotonin nerve in the brain stem by being stimulated by light , it is said that the retina needs light with an illuminance of 2500 to 3000 lux or more, so a general lamp or something is about 500 lux, so light That's not enough.
Therefore, the source of life, the power of the sun's rays, can stimulate the serotonin nerves. By the way, the illuminance of sunlight is more than 10,000 lux. More than enough!
Estimated of various illuminance and brightness
It was found that the serotonin nerve in the brain stem is activated by light stimulation to secrete serotonin. But even if the sun goes, there are sunny days and cloudy days, but how much weather is it about 2500-3000 lux? So, I took a look at how many situations and how much light there is.
◎ Sunlight on a sunny day… 100,000 lux
○ Outdoor shade on a sunny day… 10,000 lux
△ Indoor window on a sunny day (north) ・ ・ ・ ・ ・ ・ 1,000-2,000 lux
✕ Indoor center on a sunny day ・ ・ ・・ ・ ・ 100 ～ 200 lux
◎ Light cloud ・ ・ ・ ・ ・ ・ 30,000 ～ 50,000 lux
○ Dark rainy weather ・ ・ ・ ・ ・ 10,000 ～ 15,000 lux
-Full moon night (ground) ・ ・ ・ ・ ・ ・ 0.2 lux
-Sunny, Moonless night ... 0.0003 lux
That's right, there is enough illuminance outdoors on a sunny day, but there is also a lot of illuminance even in the shade outdoors.
Also, rainy days are about one-tenth that of sunny days, but there is enough illuminance to stimulate the serotonin nerves.
This means that you should actively go out and take a walk during the day. Well, if you have severe depressive symptoms, it's a pain, so it's impossible.
If you think "I'm going to increase serotonin", it means going out every day. Please go to a convenience store to buy rice balls!
So, if you are grateful, I will introduce articles related to serotonin, such as the increase in serotonin and the secretion of serotonin in the intestine, so please read it if you like.