Lunacy and the Full Moon

Do people go crazy on the full moon?

It's an enduring bit of folk wisdom, spurred by modern-day rumors that emergency rooms fill up, oddballs act odder, and dogs howl in the streets when the moon beams. Furthermore, there are lots of perfectly rational people who will assure you they just feel a little restless around the time of the full moon. The very word "lunatic" is built on the Latin word for moon, luna. So, is there proof?


If nothing else, there's proof that scientists take the question with a surprising seriousness.
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Biologists, psychologists, even a dentist, have taken a crack at correlating full moons with foolishness. The results have been mixed, and mysterious:
A 1983 study of calls to a poison center found that unintentional poisoning increases at the full moon; and that suicide attempts and drug abuse increase with the new moon. A 1980 study, though, couldn't link drug overdose to any lunar phase.

A 1991 study found that women in a treatment center who were developmentally delayed misbehaved more often on the full moon. But a 1994 study found no full-moon correlation with admissions to a psychiatric hospital, and a 1997 study said doctors see no increase of depressed and anxious patients.

A study of a suburban hospital's emergency room concluded the full moon brought no howling hoards.

A study of workplace absenteeism actually found more people at work on the full moon.

Another inquiry revealed that people ate 8 percent bigger meals and drank 26 percent less alcohol on full-moon days than on new-moon days.


Fun stuff, though not exactly a series of smoking guns.
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Interesting facts about the full moon, which has always fastinated me since I was a small child. I am sure most people have glanced at the moon at least once or twice when it has been rising to its' fullest. It is the stuff of romantic tales and horror films. It can stir up thoughts of a candle lit dinner or a quiet walk on the beach with someone special. The moon sits silent, she offers no wisdom to those of us who wish to find it there, yet we still seek her out to carry our dreams to where ever they many need to go. Lovers kiss beneath it, poets write of its' beauty, and lonely hearts long to share it with that special soul mate.
However you see it...or even if you don't bother...it is there, gazing down on our place in the universe.