Nieces Halo and Amity are two of the most important people in Dr Shelley James’ life.
”They’re such an inspiration to me”, she laughs.
With a PhD from the Royal College of Art and as an international expert on light and well-being (you might have seen her appearing on the award-winning BBC series ”Innovations that Changed the World” and on the webinar series the Neuroscience of Light) Shelley James has in-depth knowledge of how light affects our well-being through life.
With her cheerful nieces around she has developed a deep commitment to improve the light health of teenagers.
”The adolescent brain is going through the most amazing process and it cannot be compared to the brain of a grown up. The connections between different parts of the brain are going through profound change, which is key to their health and happiness into adulthood and beyond. This, along with the rapid changes in their physical bodies, means that they need an hour more sleep than a ten year old”, Shelley James explains.
”In fact, the teenager’s circadian rhythm is running two hours late compared to an adult. That means that a 7am wake-up call for an adult feels like 5am for an adolescent. Might be good to know if you have teenagers around…”