July/August 2002

Toss the clock for a good night's sleep
By Ralph and Lahni DeAmicis  

      If you're not getting good, restorative sleep on a regular basis, here's the first thing you should do: Open your bedroom window, unplug that clock radio that sits on your bedside table and throw it out the window. Try not to hit anybody. Now close the window, and replace that nasty clock radio with a battery-powered clock. Not only will you sleep better and lower your stress levels, but you may reduce your risk of brain tumors and gray hair. It's up to you which one you dread more.

      Remember that feng shui is the manipulation of energy. Having a continuously running, alternating current, electric motor scant inches from your pineal gland obviously affects your energy. The reason it so challenges your ability to sleep has to do with the type of electricity it uses. Your body, like a battery, uses direct current (DC) electricity. It usually runs smoothly in one direction along the nervous system. The electricity that runs our homes, including those nefarious clock radios, is alternating current (AC). It changes directions 60 times a second. One of the only places we find alternating current in nature is in lightning. Generally, we like to keep lightening far away from our bodies. That's also where our sleeping bodies like to keep the rest of those AC gadgets, which is why the idea of pitching those clock radios out the window is so appealing. 

      Another point: Tests have shown that the sleeping body can be as many as 10,000 times more sensitive to electromagnetic and chemical pollutants than the waking body. During the day, when you're up and running, your electrical system is operating at full capacity. At night, your body goes into repair mode, becoming receptive and vulnerable. This is why toxic smells that didn't bother you during the day, like fresh paint or new carpeting, become so obvious to you when you're drifting off to sleep or waking up.

      While any electronic device (lamps, televisions, stereos, cordless phones) near the head of the bed is a problem, clock radios are the most prevalent offenders. First, they're cheaply made, with a minimum of insulation so the detectable electromagnetic field normally extends several feet from where they're placed. Second, they have illuminated dials that confuse the pineal gland, which relies upon complete darkness to set its internal clock. Third, unlike a lamp where the size and toxicity of the field is dramatically reduced when you turn off the switch, clock radios run constantly.

      You might wonder if you can just move your clock radio to the other side of the bedroom. You can, but it won't help much. As long as the clock is plugged in, electricity is moving through the walls, including the wall by your head. When electricity moves through a wire, it creates an electromagnetic field which can mean trouble for your sleeping nervous system. If you're really attached to your clock radio, put it in a room down the hall. That way, the illuminated dial won't upset your internal clock and you'll actually have to wake up and get out of bed to turn it off-which is the reason you bought it in the first place. And, most important, you'll enjoy a sounder, healthier night's sleep.