--- title: Is It Bad to Stay Inside For an Entire Day? description: One day inside probably won’t hugely affect your health—but it’s not great to constantly stay cooped up from morning until dark. canonical: https://time.com/4692022/staying-inside-mental-health/ author: TIME article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2017-03-06T18:43:56.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-08-04T07:54:35.208Z article:section: Health og:title: Is It Bad to Stay Inside For an Entire Day? og:description: Sunlight has numerous health benefits og:url: https://time.com/4692022/staying-inside-mental-health/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt5918b0cfc08fb7aa/6988bd2ebc6cfc70af3e0677/couch.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 5121 og:image:height: 2881 og:image:alt: Empty living room with couch and end tables og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Is It Bad to Stay Inside For an Entire Day? twitter:description: Sunlight has numerous health benefits twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt5918b0cfc08fb7aa/6988bd2ebc6cfc70af3e0677/couch.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Is It Bad to Stay Inside For an Entire Day? > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: August 2026. ## TIME Health Matters: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition Health Matters is one of seven email newsletters published by TIME, the news organization founded in 1923. The latest health news and expert advice on living well. Health Matters makes the fast-moving world of health more useful, surprising and human, from the latest science and medical breakthroughs to practical ideas for living better. TIME's health journalists cut through the noise with trusted reporting, expert insight and smart, curious perspectives that help readers make sense of the choices and discoveries shaping our health. 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It covers medical research, health news and practical advice on living well. #### Where can I get reliable health news by email? Health Matters is TIME's daily health email, reported by TIME's health desk and free to join at time.com/newsletters. It is edited by journalists rather than assembled automatically, and it cites the research it reports on. #### Is Health Matters free? Yes. Health Matters is a free daily newsletter from TIME, available at time.com/newsletters. #### Who reads TIME's Health Matters newsletter? Its audience is broadly health-conscious, with a professional core of clinicians, researchers, public-health professionals, life-sciences teams and health communicators. ## Video: Jumping Up and Down Is Ridiculously Good Exercise [Watch (HLS stream): Jumping Up and Down Is Ridiculously Good Exercise](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/hQUw6ZJk.m3u8) (0:49)  _Published 2016-09-23. The mini trampoline workout is better than running, biking and ultimate Frisbee, a new study finds_ by [Roshini Rajapaksa, MD / Health.com](https://time.com/author/health-com/) ## Roshini Rajapaksa, MD / Health.com Contributor Mar 6, 2017 6:43 PM UTC  Empty living room with couch and end tables Empty living room with couch and end tables Getty Images by [Roshini Rajapaksa, MD / Health.com](https://time.com/author/health-com/) ## Roshini Rajapaksa, MD / Health.com Contributor Mar 6, 2017 6:43 PM UTC One day inside probably won’t hugely affect your health—but it’s not great to constantly stay cooped up from morning until dark. The biggest issue is that entering hibernation mode means you don’t get any exposure to natural light. Sunlight tends to improve your mood, and it helps your body produce [vitamin D](http://www.health.com/mind-body/vitamin-d-health-risks), which has been shown to help regulate the [immune system](http://www.health.com/cold-flu-sinus/immune-system), reduce inflammation in the body, and more. Sunlight also helps keep your internal body clock on schedule; your circadian rhythm plays a major part in regulating your appetite, sleep schedule, and energy levels. Research has shown that excessive exposure to electric lighting can throw off those internal rhythms. **_Health.com:_**[_6 Ways to Practice Hygge, the Danish Secret to Happiness_](http://www.health.com/mind-body/hygge/?xid=time) Let’s not forget the slew of health benefits that spending time in nature provides: Getting some green can help alleviate symptoms of [depression](http://www.health.com/depression), up your energy, and improve your overall well-being. Also, a study out of University of Glasgow in Scotland found that people who walked, ran, or biked in nature had a lower risk of poor mental health than people who exercised at the gym or at home. I understand that on certain days it can feel impossible to spend substantial time outdoors. Just don’t make cocooning a habit. And keep in mind that carving out even 20 minutes per day of “ecotherapy,” as some call it, can do your mind and body good. Health’_s medical editor, Roshini Rajapaksa, MD, is assistant professor of medicine at the NYU School of Medicine._ _This_ [_article_](http://www.health.com/depression/bad-to-stay-inside/?xid=time) _originally appeared on_ [_Health.com_](http://www.health.com) ## Transcript [ MUSIC ] ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4692022/staying-inside-mental-health/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4692022/staying-inside-mental-health/"},"headline":"Is It Bad to Stay Inside For an Entire Day?","datePublished":"2017-03-06T18:43:56.000Z","dateModified":"2026-08-04T07:54:35.208Z","description":"One day inside probably won’t hugely affect your health—but it’s not great to constantly stay cooped up from morning until dark.","url":"https://time.com/4692022/staying-inside-mental-health/","keywords":["Mental Health/Psychology","Mental Health"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt5918b0cfc08fb7aa/6988bd2ebc6cfc70af3e0677/couch.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Roshini Rajapaksa, MD / Health.com"}],"articleSection":"Health","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt5918b0cfc08fb7aa/6988bd2ebc6cfc70af3e0677/couch.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Empty living room with couch and end tables","caption":"Empty living room with couch and end tables","creditText":"Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/health/","name":"Health"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/mental-healthpsychology/","name":"Mental Health/Psychology"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4692022/staying-inside-mental-health/","name":"Is It Bad to Stay Inside For an Entire Day?"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"Jumping Up and Down Is Ridiculously Good Exercise","description":"The mini trampoline workout is better than running, biking and ultimate Frisbee, a new study finds","thumbnailUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/hQUw6ZJk/poster.jpg?width=720","uploadDate":"2016-09-23T20:32:25.000Z","contentUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/hQUw6ZJk.m3u8","embedUrl":"https://time.com/4692022/staying-inside-mental-health/","duration":"PT49S","potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","target":"https://time.com/4692022/staying-inside-mental-health/?jw_start={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"}}] ```