Is the Full Moon Effect Real?

The world feels off-kilter nowadays. Almost as if we live under a permanent full moon.  The full moon effect is the concept that there are more crimes, mayhem, and hysteria on the night of a full moon. But is true or just folklore? I had to know the answer so I dove head-first down the lunar rabbit hole.

You can listen to this article here or watch the video:

Did you know in 18th-century England, people on trial for murder were allowed to campaign for a lighter sentence on grounds of lunacy if the crime happened on the night of a full moon? No, you probably didn’t know that. Unless, of course, you’re weird like me (if so, welcome, friend). Back to the point.

Also, during various periods, psychiatric patients at London’s Bethlehem Hospital were shackled and flogged as a preventive measure during various lunar phases. Pretty disgusting, right?

All of this was done because of the moon. That bold, bright, ball in the sky at night that both frightens and inspires people.

“It is the very error of the moon. She comes more near the earth than she was wont. And makes men mad.”
—William Shakespeare, Othello

If you’re impatient and want the short answer (no judgment here), it’s ‘no’. There is little to no data that verifies the full moon effect. But if you’re a nerd like me, keep reading for cool history, cultural findings, and current developments regarding the moon.

What is a full moon, anyway?

image of person holding the moon for article is full moon effect real adventurousnerd.com

The full moon occurs every 29.5 days. At least 14 nights per year we have one. It’s a phase where, from Earth, the moon appears to be fully illuminated for much of the night. It happens when the side of the moon that’s facing the earth is fully lit up from the sun. Fun fact: there’s no moonlight as such, it’s sunlight reflecting off the moon. The moon borrows its light from the sun. 

Yep, you read that right. The light we’re seeing is a reflection of the sun. So the full moon’s illuminated appearance is dependent upon its position as it orbits.

As the positioning changes, the moon appears to have different ‘faces’. Basically, it looks different. And because faces change regularly and predictably, many ancient cultures used the moon as a timepiece of sorts. It was their calendar in the sky, informing them of the cycles and seasons of life.

And here’s where things get woo-woo (or scientific, depending on which label you identify with)….

The moon is the closest natural object to the Earth of its size. Because of its size, it exerts a gravitational force on large bodies of water, affecting the tides. It’s this gravitational force that’s thought to impact behavior patterns.

A little history on the full moon effect from different parts of the globe

The idea of madness and mayhem reigning supreme during a full moon is as old as humankind. Sleepwalking, violence, insomnia, and all manner of strange behavior are attributed to the night of a full moon. If you speak with people working in emergency and police departments, ambulance first responders, and other frontline workers, they often agree on the ‘full moon lunacy’ effect in some form.

In some cultures, warnings passed down for generations about the moon emitting energy that brought natural disasters, wars, outbreaks, and plagues.

The English adjective pertaining to the Moon is “lunar“, derived from the Latin word for the Moon, lūna.

*The Roman goddess Luna bore the name and words like lunatic, looney,  and more all refer to states of madness, and all with ‘Luna’ as a prefix.

*Greek philosopher Aristotle and Roman historian Pliny the Elder suggested that the brain was the “moistest” organ in the body and thereby most susceptible to the pernicious influences of the moon, which triggers the tides.

*It’s also called the Transylvania Effect or the Lunar Lunacy Effect.

So, is the full moon effect true or just a myth?

Here’s what I’ve uncovered so far.

Does crime increase?

In 2007 several United Kingdom police departments such as the one in the seaside town of Brighton preemptively added extra officers on full-moon nights to cope with what they presumed would be higher crime rates. Although the police force added additional staff, there were no reports that justified these cautious preparations.  Now, you may be thinking, this is just anecdotal. Yes, I had the same thought. And although anecdotes hold value, I wanted to get a bit more granular and look at data.

    1. I found a study from Finland that looked specifically at homicides between 1961 and 2014 to test whether homicides varied by moon phases. The conclusion? “Contrary to current scientific opinion, an association exists between moon phases and homicides, and contrary to what has been previously assumed, homicides declined during the full moon, especially in earlier decades. However, the causality of the association remains elusive.” So there were fewer homicides during the full moon phase and there’s no explanation or causation. It’s worth noting, this study focused solely homicides, not crime in general. So, I kept digging.

2. Next, I found a study published in the British Medical Journal (BMJ) that analyzed crimes reported across three police stations between 1978 and 1982 (a much smaller timeframe window than the aforementioned Finnish study).  The conclusion? “The incidence of crimes committed on full moon days was much higher than on all other days, new moon days, and seventh days after the full moon and new moon.”

3. Then I came across a German study attempting to determine a possible relationship between lunar phases and serious crimes of battery in Bavaria between 1999 and 2005. The result? “No significant associations between full, absent, and the moon’s interphases and serious crimes of battery could be detected. Furthermore, a Fourier analysis was conducted that failed to produce an association between violence and the moon’s phases.”

4. In 1985, US psychologists J. Rotton, R. Colver, and I. Kelly conducted a meta-analysis of 37 studies worldwise. The results were not supportive of any full moon effect whatsoever.

5. Alan M. Beck of Purdue University conducted a longitudinal study “to objectively examine the lunar influence on the frequency, duration and intensity of behaviors in individuals with Alzheimer’s disease.” The study concluded that individuals with Alzheimer’s exhibited significantly more behaviors during periods of full moon, and that these behaviors were of a greater duration during the full moon.

6. Another study analyzed data to see if there’s a correlation between the lunar phases and crime over a 15-year period in two US counties (Dade in Florida and Cuyahoga in Ohio). The results were conflicting, with Dade showing a higher incidence but Cuyahoga showing nonsignificant periodicity.

So, what’s the score so far?

The full moon affects crime                                   

 2

The full moon doesn’t affect crime (no conclusive data)

4

So, nothing conclusive so far on crime as it relates to the full moon effect.  But, I wondered about mental health so back to the rabbit hole, we go!

Is there an effect on mental states?

In a tiny study of just 17 people, researchers found patients rapidly cycled between a state of hyperactive mania and depression during a full moon. But being such a small study, it’s hard to draw any solid conclusions.

I didn’t find anything else conclusive so I rolled on to sleep disturbances and insomnia.

Does the full moon effect cause insomnia?

Let’s look at the results of a small study in 2013 of 33 people who spent the night in a sleep laboratory. Even though they were in a lab and obvsiously couldn’t’ perceive whether the moon was full or not, study participants rated their sleep quality as 15 percent lower when there was a full moon. But, again, it’s unreasonable to come to any solid conclusions with such a small number of study participants.

I found a few other studies with results showing effects on REM and overall quality of sleep. So although the studies were small, sleep seems to be one of the only things conclusively impacted by the full moon. 

image of lunar phases of the moon for the full moon effect article aliciajoy.net

How about the full moon’s effect on other species?

An observational analysis of data from Bradford Royal Infirmary from 1997-1999 showed an increase of dog, and other animal, bites during the full moon. “The incidence of animal bites rose significantly at the time of a full moon. With the period of the full moon as the reference period, the incidence rate ratio of the bites for all other periods of the lunar cycle was significantly lower (P <0.001).”

But, in contrast to the Bradford data, another observational analysis of data by the Australian Public Hospitals concluded “Dog bites are no more frequent on full moons than at any other time of the month. “

Interestingly, there is strong evidence about the moon and its effect on the rythms and cycles of other organisms in nature.  Namely, there’s evidence that the moon affects the physiological life cycles of various specimens: “Starting with the beginning of the last century, a multitude of scientific studies has documented that the lunar cycle times behaviors and physiology in many organisms. It is plausible that even the first life forms adapted to the different rhythms controlled by the moon. ”

So, after digging around on the topic, we’re back to square one. Several conflicting studies, with nothing concrete.

Researchers across the globe have come up empty-handed when attempting to validate the full moon claims of mayhem and madness.

But what about the proclamations by police officers, emergency room staff, and other front-line workers who complain that full moons are busier and ‘wilder’ than other nights? Is it all hogwash? Are they imagining it or making it up?

Is it just a case of confirmation bias, where you’re seeing what you believe? This type of bias would mean if it’s a full moon and you believe in the lunacy effect, you’ll be more apt to notice strange behavior and chalk it up to the moon.

Others believe there’s more light in the sky and so this draws out more people. More people go out, and hang out, and the more people that are out and about, the higher the chance of incidents.

Of course, these are all just people’s theories. I found nothing to back any of that up.

The idea of the full moon mania also begs the question of how. If it were true that the full moon affected behavior, by what mechanism was this happening? Just as the moon affects the tides of water (which is a scientifically proven fact), there’s the idea that it also exerts an influence on the water of our bodies. Meaning our fluid levels are impacted which in turn impacts our thoughts and behaviors. But as you may guess, no evidence of this has been found.

But, wait…

What if there’s no modern data because the effect has lessened over the years?

Did you know that the moon is drifting further away from the Earth? Our moon is drifting further from the Earth by a few centimeters every year.

I am far from any scientist, astronomer. I’m just a moon nerd and love researching stuff. But I am left wondering if the effect the moon has on Earth and its inhabitants is lessening due to the slow drift. I have no idea. Just another of my interesting ponderings. One day, I’ll go down that rabbit hole.

My lunar rabit hole explorations led me in one big inconclusive circle. But still, I can’t deny any person or group’s stories about what they’ve witnessed during a full moon. Although anecdotal, I have no evidence, proof, or justification to contradict what they claim they experienced, especially because those experiences seem to be worldwide and for thousands of years. I also have a deep respect for cultures’ rituals, respects, and beliefs around the full moon and any possible effect it may have on behavior patterns.

For now, I’ll leave you with a lovely poem by Dorianne Laux Facts about the Moon.

Cited:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moon

https://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/9/1/e022759

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1444800/

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0010440X09000030

https://www.alzheimers.net/does-the-full-moon-affect-alzheimers-patientshttps://www.cell.com/current-biology/fulltext/S0960-9822(13)00754-9

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC27561/

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC27562/

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7322537/

 

24 Life Lessons From 24 Months of Being a Nomad

 Published: October, 26th, 2015

I’ve learned a lot over the last 24 months of being a digital nomad, living on the road. And many of these lessons are applicable to life in general, not just travel.

I left home over two years ago. I didn’t have a long-term plan. I still don’t. In the two years, I have bounced around to nine different countries but stayed the longest in three. That’s not much compared to many ‘digital nomads’ who eat countries like skittles. But that’s not my style. This brings us to #1 on the list.

1

You Can Create Your Own Style of Travel 

Some like it fast; Some like it slow.

I’m with the fuddy-duddy, slow crowd. Maybe it’s my age (36). Maybe it’s my personality, but packing up every weekend is nauseating to even think about.

I do well with a few short trips here and there but couldn’t make that my full-time style of living. Instead, I’ve created the pace that works best for me…traveling slowly. I’m also a short-term nomad (I made that label up myself). I now nomad for a period of time, return to my base, rinse and repeat when I can and want. 

2

Don’t Force Yourself to Do What Seems Trendy/Popular/Cool

For me, this applies to learning languages.

When I first became a nomad, I thought I’d learn the languages of each country I go to. Big mistake. I was forcing it and became frustrated. Everyone is different. I know have a specific language learning approach I take to overcome language barriers. Other than that, I don’t force it.

3

Make the Effort to Keep in Touch With People 

My memories often feel like a carousel of distant people and countries. Most of which are part of the past, with little connection to the present. Sometimes I feel uneasy just thinking about this.

So, now, if I’ve made a genuine connection with someone, I make an effort to keep in touch, to foster the connection, and participate in growing that relationship.

4

Wherever Home Is, Go There As Needed

For some, home is the blank canvas, a place to write, a meditation corner, a prayer mat, a person or group of people, or something else. For others, it’s a physical place that’s comforting and familiar.

Home is a place to take off your uncomfortable shoes, strip bare, recharge, and release.

I have a few homes that include physical and spiritual places. When I’m feeling exhausted, I don’t hesitate to wander home and stay for as long as I need.

5

Pay Attention to Your Health

When we get busy or stressed (or both), we tend to sacrifice healthy habits first with a barrage of excuses. This is particularly easy to do when you’re on the road. There are so many distractions you can lose focus on your healthy habits.

Don’t do it. You’ll always regret it. Always.

6

Tarzan Isn’t King of the Jungle, Wifi Is

The internet is the tool I use to continue to fund my travels, my life.  There have been times when my own poor planning messed me up royally (like the time I booked an apartment in Mallorca, Spain that I knew didn’t have internet and spent most of my days searching for stable wifi).

I do my work and communicate with friends and family back home through the internet. It’s that important. And so now I do thorough research on my next location to make sure I’m not wasting time and energy searching for stable wifi connections.

7

There Will Be Times It Feels Like Everything Is Going Wrong

Yes, everything. Like the time I had my credit card electronically hacked and then a day later, dropped and cracked my phone rendering it inoperable. Learning to cope with these unwanted occurrences is part of our growth. One piece of advice: make preparation your best friend. It comes with benefits.

Preparation is a boring, nerdy noun, but it will save your ass time and again. Do all the geeky prep before you leave. If I had been better prepared when my phone dropped, I wouldn’t have been so devastated. I now travel with a backup phone. An old phone that I can use if needed. I also have a plan in case I lose my bank/credit cards.

8

A Simple Smile Is a Valuable Asset

I’ve learned that when you are lost, frustrated, and exhausted, a smile can go a long way. People are always more open to helping.

People don’t smile much anymore. Maybe this is just my theory. Of course, this changes based on location. It’s funny how some cities are more smiley than others. Some days I count how many people smile back at me when I smile at them; it’s one of the weird games I play in my head.

9

Know What Matters Most

What matters most for you?

Seeing different locations?

Building relationships?

Eating delicious food?

Learning new languages?

Earning More money?

Developing your spirituality?

Helping others? 

What matters most in your life? Figure it out and make that thing -those things- your TOP priority. Be selfish if you have to. Ignore haters (hate that word), but don’t stray from your priorities (unless it’s an emergency).

10

Be Open

You will encounter people and places that are outside of your ‘what’s-normal-and-acceptable-zone’ (like the temple in India filled with rats).

Get over it.

The more negative energy you spend focusing on things that are out of your norm, the less energy you have for your life priorities (see #9 above).

11

Making Surface-Level Connections With Many People Isn’t the Same as Connecting Deeply With a Few

You probably know the saying, ‘quality over quantity’. I think it was coined referring to relationships.

My aim when making connections is for depth, not breadth. This takes conscious effort when on the road. It’s so easy to maintain a constantly changing circle of superficial friendships (if you can even call them that).

12

Movement Doesn’t Necessarily Equal Freedom

The digital nomad community is filled with ‘freedom talk’.

Be free, travel the world blah blah blah.  It’s inspiring, and I get it. In fact, all that talk inspired me to make my own leap into nomadism. But I don’t fool myself. This lifestyle is not my idea of freedom. In fact, when I am struggling to find fast WiFi, I don’t feel free at all. On the contrary, I feel chained to the internet. 

This is just my chosen lifestyle, for now. I may settle somewhere and feel free in that one place.

Don’t get movement confused with idealistic slogans and ideas.

13

Be Grateful Wherever You Are

Enough said.

14

There Will Be Things You Miss That Cannot Be Replaced

There are some things from ‘home’ you’ll miss, and nothing will fill that void.

Family, close friends, your car, being able to express yourself without using a language translator, Reese’s peanut butter cups, Flamin Hot Cheetos. Okay, that’s my list. But the point is be flexible, adapt, keep smiling. There will always be things that are removed from your life -by choice or not by choice.

Adapt.

Then adapt some more.

15

Different Cultures Have Their Own Standards for Courtesy and Politeness

If it bothers you that not all people do things the way you think they should be done, you’ll have a hard time on the road.

You’ll also have a problem in most major cities where you (hopefully) interact with people of different cultures. The less you assume they ‘should’ behave a certain way, and the more you just accept them for how they are, the less angst you place on yourself. Again, this is wasted energy.

16

Don’t Book Tickets (Or Make Major Life Decisions) When You’re Feeling Down or Angry

I’ve been angry with someone or something that happened on the road and on the verge of booking a ticket out of there.

Note Wise.

Most times, by the next morning, my head is clearer and I can see that packing up and leaving in a big huff would probably be a bad move for me (higher-priced tickets, not much research on the location I’d be going to, no time to say goodbye to people I’d befriended, etc). 

There’s a funny thing that happens when you are emotionally down. That funny thing is a cloud of misjudgment and not-so-wise decisions. Give yourself as much time as needed to make these decisions so you avoid regrets later.

17

Wherever You Are, Be There

If I move around too quickly, my mind stays stuck in ‘where’s next?’ mode.

You are where you are on the road. And in life. There is nowhere else you can be right now. Accept it and so much of life gets easier. Try to be fully present right where you are in life (emotionally and physically).

18

Many People Won’t ‘Get You’. And That’s Okay

I meet people almost every day who ask what I do and why I travel.

Many are amazed. But many are not. In fact, some ask me if I “actually like this lifestyle.” Er, yes. I chose it. I don’t get offended when people don’t get me / what I do/ things I write. I accept it and keep moving (pun intended).

19

Remember Your Other Hobbies 

I love to travel, but it is far from my only joy.

About a year into traveling, I realized I had given up some hobbies that I was missing. Skating is one of them. I finally got a pair of skates when I was living in Germany. It’s awkward as ever to travel with them but that’s just a sacrifice I’ve made. Skating is bliss for me. It’s my meditation on wheels. Remember the things you love. We get so caught up in the drama of life that we forget.

These things renew us and bring us joy. Don’t forget them.

20

Travel/Nomadism Isn’t Superior to Another Way of Life

When you do something that most people don’t (like travel a lot or become a nomad), it’s easy to put on a mask of superiority.

Newsflash: travel isn’t superior to any other habits or way of life. I don’t feel I’m living better than anyone. Just different. I hear conversations all the time with nomads snubbing people who aren’t location independent. This judgmental point of view is wasted energy.

Again, drop this attitude and life becomes easier.

21

Learn to Handle Being Uncomfortable

When you’re in a new place, you will feel uncomfortable at some point.

There have been times when I was lost, didn’t speak the language, didn’t know anyone, didn’t understand the menu, had no idea how to find the food/blankets/towels/shoes/kettle that I needed. The list goes on and on. I had to get comfortable feeling uncomfortable. Push yourself to step outside of the zone of cushy-ness. Outside of that space where everything -and everyone – is known and familiar.

Outside of that zone is where real growth happens.

22

Be Authentic

Always be you. I’ve seen people on the road take on whole new personas. It’s easy to do. You’re in a new place and nobody knows you. But masks are heavy to wear, and they must come down at some point. Be yourself. Being yourself is true freedom.

23

Nomadic Living Doesn’t Bring Happiness

Nothing outside of you brings happiness.

Nothing.

If you have issues deep that keep you up at night or cause anxiety and sadness, those issues will be right there with you on the road. You’ll have a bunch of distractions to dull the pain, but they will not leave you.

Get to the root of those issues and never expect the outside world to be your happiness medicine.

24

If There’s Something You’re Thinking of Doing (Becoming a nomad/traveling/writing a book), Stop Deliberating.

Make a plan. Go!

I often wonder what took me so long to hit the road.

Don’t be like me. Envision it. Create a basic plan (even if it is just short-term). And go. Go where your heart calls you to. It’ll be scary and crazy and uncomfortable and AMAZING.

No matter what happens, you’ll learn. I certainly have.

Alicia Joy