Study on the effects of near-infrared is up and running

In November, we started with recruiting new participants for the study on the effects of near-infrared light. Purpose was to include 20 more subjects in winter. The task was to include them all within 3 weeks to be ready before Christmas. And yes! We are happy to announce that we managed to find 20 enthusiastic…

Events on Daylight saving time issue 2021

Marijke Gordijn is invited for several public events (in Dutch) on the topic of Daylight saving time. The first one will be an interview organised by Studium Generale Utrecht in collaboration with Tivoli/Vredenburg. On October 28th, at 8:15 pm on the stage of Tivoli-Vredenburg in Utrecht, Marijke will talk about the role of the biological…

Longer and later sleep due to lock down

On January 8th, Marijke Gordijn from Chrono@Work and Roelof Hut from the University of Groningen were interviewed by EditieNL about the effects of the COVID-19 related restrictions on sleep. Colleagues recently published that on average people sleep longer and later during the lockdown. However, shortage of sleep and sleeping problems have serious health effects. EditieNL…

Interview NPO Radio 1 on December 26th

In the early morning of December 26th, Marijke Gordijn from Chrono@Work gave an interview on NPO Radio 1 about the role of light for well being and health. This item is especially interesting in the dark winter days around Christmas in our region. The focus of the interview was on the new study we do…

Tips to improve the regularity of daily routines, even when nothing about your life feels regular!

The COVID-19 pandemic poses a serious health threat to the world population. In response, governments are implementing a variety of new policies including self-quarantine, self-isolation and social distancing. While medically necessary to limit spread, these new social policies can disrupt many of the stabilizing factors in our lives which support mental health. In close collaboration,…

Working from home? Take care you see enough daylight!

The policies to limit spreading of COVID-19 is ‘stay home’ and ‘work from home’. The consequence is that most people see very little daylight. While it is very important to stay home as much as possible and keep ‘social distance’ all the time, in the Netherlands it is not forbidden to go outside. The Dutch…

Upcoming lectures on sleep-wake rhythms disturbances and melatonin

Chrono@Work will be present at several symposia, classes and congresses in the upcoming period. Please have a look and subscribe if you are interested in the topic. 16th April 20:00h in Leeuwarden: Studium Generale Het Einde van de Zomertijd en Dan? 18th April whole day in Zeist: Medilex symposium on ‘Slaapproblemen en -stoornissen bij mensen met…

TV program FOCUS on health risks of night work

On November 7th, NTR presented a documentary FOCUS on the health risks of working at night and discusses possible solutions. In accordance with the reports of the Dutch Health Council 2015 and 2017, the most important point is to avoid working at night as much as possible. Roelof Hut from the University of Groningen and…

Plea for Central European Time in the Netherlands

Last weekend Daylight saving time 2018 ended and Europe went back to Central European Time. In a short movie commissioned by the University of Groningen, Marijke Gordijn explained once more why for us, in the Netherlands, the current time we have in winter is the most optimal choice. In fact, The Netherlands should even be…

Scientific arguments to stop with daylight saving time

Chrono@Work is proactive in spreading scientific arguments for a thoughtfull decision on stopping summer/wintertime. Now that the EU recommends to end changing our clocks twice a year, each country has to decide what to do. The recommendation from the EU is based on years of discussions with and within the parliament and triggered by the outcome…

Human solutions for control rooms in Muscat

Invited by Honeywell and Medilux, Chrono@Work gave a lecture in Muscat (Oman) on ‘human solutions for control rooms’. In between very technical lectures and for a very special, interested audience, we talked about putting the human in the center of attention. What can we do to optimize the 24h environment for people working 24/7 in…

Short-wavelength attenuated polychromatic white light during work at night: limited melatonin suppression without substantial decline of alertness

Van de Werken, M., Giménez, M. C., de Vries, B., Beersma, D. G. M., & Gordijn, M. C. M. Short-wavelength attenuated polychromatic white light during work at night: limited melatonin suppression without substantial decline of alertness. Chronobiology International, 30(7), 843–854. (2013).