Research
Christmas 2017: Natural Phenomena
The full moon and motorcycle related mortality: population based double control study
BMJ 2017; 359 doi: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.j5367 (Published 11 December 2017)
Cite this as: BMJ 2017;359:j5367
Rapid Response
Re: The full moon and motorcycle related mortality: population based double control study
Fullmoon: Indian Faith and Health Related Issues
For centuries there has been a widespread belief that the moon exerts a powerful effect on human mind behaviour brain and health
Hindus have believed that the fortnightly cycle of the moon exerts a great influence on the human body and mind, just as it affects the water bodies on earth in cycles of tides. During a full moon, a person may tend to become restless, irritable and ill-tempered, and showing the signs of behavior that hints of 'lunacy'— a term derived from the Latin word for moon, "luna." Hence, in Hindus practice, there are specific rituals for the new moon and full moon days.
But many scientists noted, a mosquito sitting on our arm exerts a more powerful gravitational pull on us than the moon does. Yet to the best of our knowledge, there have been no reports of a “mosquito lunacy effect." The moon’s gravitational force affects only open bodies of water, such as oceans and lakes, but not contained sources of water, such as the human brain. The gravitational effect of the moon is just as potent during new moons — when the moon is invisible to us — as it is during full moons.
Even then without a plausible physical cause, some still point to anecdotal evidence of higher rates of crime, accidents seizures stroke headache sudden death emergency room admissions psychiatric symptoms and surgical mistakes. So far no one has ever been able to show consistently, with multiple studies, that the full moon has any effect on brain mind and behavior.
More than 100 studies on lunar effects concluded that the studies have failed to show a reliable and significant correlation between the full moon, or any other phase of the moon, and the each of the following:
traffic accidents,
the homicide rate,
crisis calls to police or fire stations,
domestic violence,
births of babies,
suicide,
major disasters,
casino payout rates,
assassinations,
kidnappings,
aggression by professional hockey players,
violence in prisons,
psychiatric admissions ,
agitated behavior by nursing home residents,
assaults,
gunshot wounds,
stabbings,
emergency room admissions,
behavioral outbursts of psychologically challenged rural adults,
lycanthropy,
vampirism,
alcoholism,
sleep walking, and
epilepsy
Competing interests: No competing interests
16 December 2017
M.A. Aleem
Neurologist
A.M.Hakkim
ABC Hospital
Trichy 620018 Tamilnadu India
@drmaaleem
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