Are changes in melatonin or Vitamin D production the mediating factor?
Dawn comes a little earlier each morning and sunset a bit later each evening now that we’ve made it to the New Year. We’ve clearly passed the winter Solstice and our hours of daylight will increase until June 21, the longest day of the year. This change in light has me pondering the effect of light and dark on our lives. Darkness and light like literary themes form the backdrop of our lives yet we hardly pay them mind. As the days lengthen I ponder their effect on the human psyche. I’ve written before and called this period from now until mid June, Suicide Season because suicide rates will progressively increase with the lengthening of day light hours. Checking for updates in the scientific literature, I find that there is a new more comprehensive study confirming the earlier ones. In a 2002 article in Epidemiology, Dr. E. Petridou and his colleagues in Athens carefully evaluated statistics from 20 different countries and confirmed the earlier studies. Suicide rates follow a seasonal p
