Scientists from the University of Surrey (England) and Heinrich Heine University Dusseldorf (Germany) have shown that exposure to daylight helps reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease. This was announced in a press release on EurekAlert !.
The study involved 14 people who were exposed to blue light (wavelength 450 nanometers) for 30 minutes, which corresponds to exposure to daylight. During the experiment, the arterial stiffness, the degree of vasodilation, blood pressure and the level of nitric oxide in blood plasma were assessed in volunteers.
It turned out that blue light helps to reduce systolic blood pressure (pressure when the heart contracts) by 8 millimeters of mercury. In addition, other indicators of the risk of cardiovascular disease decreased in the subjects, and relaxation of vascular tension also increased. In addition, the concentration of nitric oxide, which is involved in the protection of the circulatory system, has increased.
According to the researchers, the results will help develop new methods of preventing heart and vascular diseases, from which more than 150 thousand people die each year in the UK alone.