ReviewSleep2021
Individual differences in light sensitivity affect sleep and circadian rhythms.
Review in Sleep, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 79 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
79 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 155 citations in OpenAlex.
- Ocular light and optical radiation exposure as a modifiable environmental determinant of health: expert consensus on research gaps and priorities.BMC medicine · 2026Guideline
- Human melanopsin (OPN4) gene polymorphisms: a systematic review.Frontiers in neuroscience · 2025Pooled it
- Evening Light Intensity and Phase Delay of the Circadian Clock in Early Childhood.Journal of biological rhythms · 2023Trial
- Diurnal rhythms of urine volume and electrolyte excretion in healthy young men under differing intensities of daytime light exposure.Scientific reports · 2021Trial
- Considerations and guidelines for photic measurement in field studies of the physiological effects of light.Npj biological timing and sleep · 2026Review
- Multivariate associations between sleep patterns and self-regulation in adolescence: Canonical correlation analysis across ABCD and NCANDA cohorts.Chronobiology international · 2026Article
- The Dark Side of Light: Spectral Variation in Post-Traumatic Photosensitivity and Its Functional Sequelae.Brain sciences · 2026Article
- Light therapy in medicine: where do we stand?Annals of translational medicine · 2026Review
- Sex and age modulate the relationship between melanopsin-dependent light sensitivity and chronotype.Sleep · 2026Article
- The Impact of Sunlight and Artificial Light at Night on Sleep Stages: Evidence From a 7-Day Sensor-Based Observational Study.JMIR mHealth and uHealth · 2026Observational
- Light Exposure as a Modifiable Determinant of Mental Health.Current psychiatry reports · 2026Review
- Who Needs Bright Light and When? Mapping the Interactions of Lighting Environments and Individual Differences in Circadian Light Sensitivity.Journal of biological rhythms · 2026Article
- Naturalistic light exposure patterns in relation to medication status, mood symptoms, and chronotype.Npj biological timing and sleep · 2026Article
- Adolescent circadian sleep health: a review of multimodal assessment strategies and clinical implications.Frontiers in sleep · 2026Review
- Unlocking Unique Physiological Reactions: Novel Insights into Four Cerebral and Systemic Physiological Responses to Colored Light.Advances in experimental medicine and biology · 2026Article
- Retinal light perception and biological rhythms: The role of light in sleep and mood from an ophthalmic perspective (Review).Molecular medicine reports · 2026Review
- Bright days, dark nights: translating science on the non-visual effects of light into public health guidance.Public health reviews · 2026Article
- Circadian dimensions in insomnia disorder: mechanistic evidence, candidate phenotypes, and a phenotype-stratified research framework.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2026Article
- Visual Impairment and Cancer Risk: A Nationwide Cohort Study of Adult Swedish Men and Women.Cancers · 2025Article
- Circadian Rhythms in Aging and Age-Related Neurogenerative Disease.Current sleep medicine reports · 2025Article
19 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
1 author at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
Artificial lighting is omnipresent in contemporary society with disruptive consequences for human sleep and circadian rhythms because of overexposure to light, particularly in the evening/night hours. Recent evidence shows large individual variations in circadian photosensitivity, such as melatonin suppression, due to artificial light exposure. Despite the emerging body of research indicating that the effects of light on sleep and circadian rhythms vary dramatically across individuals, recommendations for appropriate light exposure in real-life settings rarely consider such individual effects. This review addresses recently identified links among individual traits, for example, age, sex, chronotype, genetic haplotypes, and the effects of evening/night light on sleep and circadian hallmarks, based on human laboratory and field studies. Target biological mechanisms for individual differences in light sensitivity include differences occurring within the retina and downstream, such as the central circadian clock. This review also highlights that there are wide gaps of uncertainty, despite the growing awareness that individual differences shape the effects of evening/night light on sleep and circadian physiology. These include (1) why do certain individual traits differentially affect the influence of light on sleep and circadian rhythms; (2) what is the translational value of individual differences in light sensitivity in populations typically exposed to light at night, such as night shift workers; and (3) what is the magnitude of individual differences in light sensitivity in population-based studies? Collectively, the current findings provide strong support for considering individual differences when defining optimal lighting specifications, thus allowing for personalized lighting solutions that promote quality of life and health.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.