Influence of Light at Night on Melatonin Suppression in Children

Context: The sensitivity of melatonin to light suppression is expected to be higher in children because children have large pupils and pure crystal lenses. However, melatonin suppression by light in children remains unclear. Objective: We investigated whether light-induced melatonin suppression in children is larger than that in adults. Methods: Thirty-three healthy primary school children (mean age, 9.2 ± 1.5 y) and 29 healthy adults (mean age, 41.6 ± 4.7 y) participated in two experiments. In the first experiment, salivary melatonin concentrations in 13 children and 13 adults were measured at night under a dim light (<30 lux) and a moderately bright light (580 lux) in an experimental facility. Pupil diameters were also measured under dim light and bright light. In the second experiment, melatonin concentrations in 20 children and 16 adults were measured under dim light in the experimental facility and under room light at home (illuminance, 140.0 ± 82.7 lux). Results: In experiment 1, the melatonin conce...