Hewton’s experience is reflected in another of Wright’s studies, in which he took a brave group of campers out in the depths of Colorado’s winter. He found that people woke up slightly more in the night, but overall got over two more hours’ sleep than they did when sleeping inside. Once they got back from the trip, he also measured their “biological night” – the time during which their body released melatonin – and found it was longer for those who had camped during winter compared to another group of his research participants who camped in summer.
Melatonin is known to play an important role in many animals’ lives, says Wright, prompting changes in fur color, reproductive status and weight gain as the seasons change. “Our findings showed that humans are really no different – we have the capacity to respond to seasonal changes in the natural light-dark cycle,” he says. (Read more about how the seasons change our sleep here).
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