Research Institute for Sport and Exercise Sciences, Liverpool John Moores University, Liverpool, United Kingdom.
Int J Sports Med. 2013 Jul;34(7):582-9. doi: 10.1055/s-0032-1331160. Epub 2012 Dec 20.
Although bright light can alter circadian timing, the practicality and effectiveness of supplementary bright light for reducing jet-lag symptoms in world-class athletes is unclear. Therefore, we randomised 22 world class female footballers to a bright light intervention or control group before a flight from USA to Europe. Intra-aural temperature, grip strength, sleep and various jet-lag symptoms were measured serially. For 4 days, the intervention participants were exposed, in pairs within their rooms, to 2 500 lux of bright light at ≈50 cm for 45-60 min at a time-of-day predicted to accelerate circadian adjustment. On post-flight day 1, indoor light transiently increased intra-aural temperature by 0.38°C (95%CI: 0.16 to 0.60, P=0.001) and increased overall jet-lag rating by ≈1 unit. Light had negligible effects on functioning, diet, bowel and sleep symptoms, which varied substantially between- and within-subjects. In conclusion, supplementary indoor light administered within the schedule of world-class athletes was not substantially effective for reducing jet-lag symptoms after a flight from the USA-Europe. Ours is the first study of the practical effectiveness of supplementary bright light in world class athletes, although sample size was naturally small, compromises were required to implement the intervention and there appears to be large inter-individual variation in the perception of what constitutes jet-lag.
尽管亮光可以改变昼夜节律，但在世界级运动员中，补充亮光以减少时差症状的实用性和有效性尚不清楚。因此，我们在从美国飞往欧洲的航班前，将 22 名世界级女子足球运动员随机分配到强光干预组或对照组。连续测量了内耳温度、握力、睡眠和各种时差症状。在 4 天的时间里，干预组的参与者在各自的房间里，以 2 个一组的方式，以 50 厘米的距离接受 2500 勒克斯的强光照射，每次照射时间为预计可以加速昼夜节律调整的时间。在飞行后的第 1 天，室内光线短暂地将内耳温度提高了 0.38°C（95%CI：0.16 至 0.60，P=0.001），整体时差评分提高了约 1 个单位。光照对功能、饮食、肠道和睡眠症状几乎没有影响，这些症状在个体间和个体内都有很大的差异。总之，在世界级运动员的日程安排内补充室内光照，对于减少从美国到欧洲的飞行后的时差症状并没有显著效果。我们的研究是首例关于补充强光对世界级运动员实际效果的研究，尽管样本量自然较小，实施干预措施需要做出妥协，而且对于什么构成时差，个体之间的差异似乎很大。
