Moon Phase and Morbidity and Crime Rate
Editor's Note:
1 Moon phases affect urinary retention, heart disease, diarrhea, spontaneous abortion, and thyroid disease.
2 Moon phases affect conception rates, with the peak occurring after the full moon.
3 During the full moon, food intake increases by 8%, and alcohol consumption decreases by 26%.
4 Before the full moon, traffic accidents reach their peak, but on the day of the full moon, accidents decrease.
5 Crime rates increase during the full moon.
According to a survey by the University of Leeds in the UK, the number of doctor's outpatient appointments increases by 3.6% around the full moon, equivalent to each clinic seeing 3 additional patients. Researchers stated that this phenomenon triggered by lunar phase changes seems unrelated to anxiety and depression.
The Institute of Preventive and Clinical Medicine in Slovakia, Czech Republic, found through a 22-year tracking study that the incidence of gout and asthma peaks around the new moon and full moon.
Another 3-year study examined nearly 800 hospitalized patients with urinary retention (a condition where the bladder cannot be completely emptied) and found that these patients' urinary retention symptoms worsened during the new moon. Interestingly, besides being affected by the moon phase, these patients did not exhibit any other symptoms related to time cycles.
According to statistics on 140,000 newborns in New York City, within the 29.53-day lunar phase cycle from new moon to new moon, the female conception rate peaks in the last quarter of the cycle. Although the fluctuation is not large, it is very regular. Researchers stated that the conception peak appearing after the full moon suggests that the weakening moonlight may have affected ovulation.
In addition, multiple independent studies have confirmed that heart disease, diarrhea, spontaneous abortion, and thyroid disease are also affected by the moon phase.
A study by Georgia State University in the US involving 694 adults also found that our food and alcohol intake are related to the lunar phase cycle, with significant changes. The report stated that subjects' food intake increased by 8% during the full moon compared to the new moon, while alcohol consumption decreased by 26%.
A study in Florida, US, on murder and aggravated assault cases indicates that the period around the full moon is a high-incidence period for such cases. Another study conducted long-term tracking across three police precincts, also finding that crime rates around the full moon are higher than on other days.
A 4-year survey on traffic accidents found that the accident rate peaks two days before the full moon, but drops to its lowest on the day of the full moon. Additionally, the accident rate is higher during the waxing phase of the moon than during the waning phase.
Although multiple studies show a link between human behavior and physiological conditions and lunar phase changes, none have provided a definitive explanation for the causes of these phenomena. Dr. Michael Zimecki of the Polish Academy of Sciences speculated that the moon phase is an intuitive marker of the monthly variation in the gravitational pull of the sun and moon on the Earth, and that changes in lunar gravity may affect human hormone and steroid levels, exerting a regular effect on the immune system.
Dr. Zimecki stated: "Although the exact principles by which the moon affects humans and animals remain to be further explored, understanding this biological rhythm may help police and doctors schedule their work."