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Daylight lamp effect: A lamp that imitates the day?
When the days get shorter and the sun goes down in the afternoon, what happens? Exactly, you feel tired and listless earlier. And you're not alone: Towards winter, this is the problem for many people. The cause is a lack of light. Little or no light signals to our body: 'Hey, time to get tired. It's almost time for bed'.
Well, that's okay. Being a little tired. Who cares? But: the early sunset can quickly turn into something really nasty. And into a real winter depression.
Winter depression usually occurs in the darker seasons such as fall and winter. The name says it all. Anyone suffering from this form of seasonal depression shows the typical symptoms of depression for weeks or even months. These include listlessness, apathy and low mood.
That doesn't sound so harmless anymore, does it? The good thing is that 2 out of 100 people actually suffer from winter depression. And yet it seems as if many more people are affected by the winter dip in mood.
The fact is: lack of light is a real problem. And what we call winter depression in winter is often a 'normal' depressive episode that occurs regardless of winter.
In other words, anyone who thinks they are suffering from winter depression may be struggling with depression in general.
Fortunately, there is a way out of the low mood. Light therapy can help with depressive moods. No matter what time of year.
When the mood is depressed: more daylight
If you suffer from depressive moods or show signs of depression, you should always seek medical advice. If you are suspected or even diagnosed with depression, a place in therapy is the be-all and end-all. And the rule here is: find one as quickly as possible. It can sometimes take months or even years to get a place in therapy.
To accompany your therapy - or simply as a mood enhancer in everyday life - you can use daylight lamps. The light from these lamps imitates real daylight. By using a light therapy lamp regularly, you can counteract the lack of light. And ensure that you get enough daylight. Even if you can't spend much time outside at the moment or the sun doesn't show much.
Nice to know: Many people think that going for walks and exercising outdoors helps to counteract the light mantle. Fact: Yes, outdoor exercise helps. But it is often not enough to cover the body's need for light. In this case, light therapy with a daylight lamp can help.
Why does a lack of light affect your mood?
A lack of daylight can upset the balance of melatonin and serotonin in our body. This is often the case in winter when we get little sunlight. But also when you travel to areas where there is little sunshine. Or if you work shifts and often sleep during the day. In all these cases, your 'internal clock' is often thrown off.
How does this happen?
As soon as we lack light, melatonin is released. This tells our body: It's time to sleep. Serotonin, on the other hand, helps us to wake up and is released when light is present. In other words, melatonin and serotonin have a decisive effect on our sleep-wake rhythm. But also on our mood. This is because serotonin is a kind of endogenous antidepressant. In the dark winter months and with a general lack of light, you can develop a serotonin deficiency. The symptoms: Tiredness, fatigue, listlessness and melancholy.
A daylight lamp can be the solution here. If you regularly expose yourself to the light of a daylight lamp, your body will ideally release serotonin.
Studies have proven this effect for many years. For example, one study from 1989shows that bright artificial light can reduce the symptoms of seasonal depression in winter. The data of the individual subjects from 14 research centers, who examined 332 patients over 5 years, were analyzed using a clustering technique. Overall, light exposure with a light intensity of 2500 lux for at least two hours a day for one week led to significantly more remissions.
Conclusion: Light therapy with daylight lamps can be very effective for depressive moods. In addition, light therapy - compared to treatment with dietary supplements or medication - is said to be rarely cause side effects side effects.
How does a daylight lamp work
Daylight lamps come in all shapes and sizes. Manufacturers are a dime a dozen. But how do you find the right daylight lamp for your needs?
First of all, you can look at the design. What fits visually into your four walls and how big can the lamp be?
But most importantly, the lamp must imitate daylight. In other words, it must emit light that comes closest to the midday sun.
The lamps emit daylight over a large area. We speak of daylight because the color of the light emitted comes closest to our midday sun. Ideally, the lamp should have a brightness of at least 2,500 lux and a maximum of 10,000 lux.
Using the daylight lamp: how light therapy works
First things first: a high-quality daylight lamp will last for many years, even if used regularly. The investment therefore pays off.
The primary aim of using a daylight lamp is to restore a healthy day-night rhythm. Or to maintain it - for example when the days get shorter.
But now to the hard facts: What is the best way to use the daylight lamp?
We always recommend following the manufacturer's instructions. Don't have any or want to deviate from the instructions? Then expose yourself to the light of your daylight lamp with 10,000 lux for half an hour every day. Ideally, you should sit about half a meter away from the lamp. You can of course keep your eyes open.
If your daylight lamp has less than 10,000 lux, spend a correspondingly longer time in front of the lamp.
By the way: Experience reports and studies show that morning is the best time for light therapy. So try to incorporate exposure into your morning routine. You don't have to sit still in front of the lamp. You can carry out many of your everyday activities as normal and eat, read or work during the radiation treatment.
Note: Guidelines and instructions are all well and good. But you know your body best. So if you notice that a longer exposure has a better effect, then go ahead. And if you prefer to do your radiation in the evening, you can of course do that too. Just try out what works for you.
Bonus: Determine your chronotype
Everyone has their own internal clock. And this determines your chronotype. You may have already noticed this yourself. Some people are more productive in the morning, others in the evening. But what is a chronotype?
According to psychologist Michael Breus, a distinction is made between the chronotypes bear, dolphin, lion and wolf are distinguished. The bear corresponds to people who like to sleep a lot and sometimes take a nap during the day. This type nevertheless organizes its day with the sun.
The dolphin chronotype is characterized by light sleep. They wake up frequently during the night - especially when exposed to light and noise. In addition, the dolphin often has problems falling asleep because he broods in bed for a long time. While the dolphin chronotype tends to be unproductive in the morning, it has its peak performance at midday. In the evening, their performance drops sharply again.
If you can and want to hit the ground running in the morning, you are probably a Leo. This chronotype gets up early and is immediately super fit. On the other hand, they have a severe afternoon slump. There may be more active phases in the evening - but this chronotype generally likes to go to bed early.
That leaves the wolf. And this is - as you can probably imagine - a nocturnal chronotype. When the sun goes down and night falls, people with this chronotype really wake up. The darkness can't affect their mood. On the contrary: after sunset, wolves turn up the heat and get a lot of work done. On the other hand, wolves are not early risers and find it difficult to get out of bed as soon as they really have to. What's more, a few hours have to pass before wolves really wake up.
Perhaps you are one of the chronotypes mentioned above? Then try to plan the use of the daylight lamp according to your type. As a wolf, you will ideally benefit from exposure in the morning. If you are a dolphin, you should avoid using daylight lamps in the evening. And if you are a lion, it may be worth exposing yourself in the early evening. As a bear, you are quite flexible when it comes to the time period for your light therapy.
If you find it difficult to determine your chronotype, ask yourself how you would organize your day if you had complete freedom of choice. In other words, independent of work and family commitments. There are also online tests that can help you determine your determine your chronotype.
FAQ Daylight lamps
Can daylight lamps produce vitamin D?
In Germany 30.2 % of adults are deficient in vitamin D. Only 38.4% of adults have an adequate supply. So there is a lack of sunlight. It is therefore no wonder that vitamin D status is subject to strong seasonal fluctuations.
Source: JoHM_2016_02_ernaehrung4.pdf (Martina Rabenberg, Gert B.M. Mensink)
Can a daylight lamp help against vitamin D deficiency?
Unfortunately not. The synthesis of vitamin D requires ultraviolet light (UV-B). This does not occur with light therapy. To get UV-B radiation, you really need to expose yourself to real sunlight.
I have problems falling asleep - when should I use a daylight lamp?
Problems falling asleep are often caused by too little melatonin in the body. The blue light from TV, PC or smartphone screens inhibits the release of this hormone. And that can be fatal, because Melatonin regulates your internal clock.
Daylight lamps have the same effect as the blue light from displays. If you expose yourself to the light of a daylight lamp too late in the evening - or even just before going to bed - you trick your body into thinking it's daytime. And thus wake it up.
For you, this means: ideally, don't use the daylight lamp in the evening. And certainly not just before going to bed. This will hopefully reduce your problems falling asleep. Tip: Two hours before going to bed, wear blueblocker glasses to signal to your brain that it's almost time to go to sleep.
Are there any side effects of using a daylight lamp?
Side effects are very rare when using a daylight lamp. Nevertheless, the use of such lamps can cause discomfort. First and foremost headaches, burning and dry eyes or reddening of the skin.
If you notice any of the side effects mentioned above when you start using light therapy - or if you notice any other side effects - you don't have to banish your daylight lamp. You can avoid the symptoms with a few easy-to-implement tips. Shorten the exposure time. Choose a different time of day to use your daylight lamp. And use humidifiers.
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Wieviel strom verbraucht das Ringlicht Luce?
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Lichtblock replied:
Hi Stefi, mit unserem Verbrauchsmesser liegt der reelle Verbrauch von dem Rotlicht bei 12,7W auf höchster Stufe und der Verbrauch des Tageslichts bei 18,5W. Wir wünschen dir einen guten Rutsch ins neue Jahr! Gruß, dein Lichtblock Team
Wieviel Lux hat eure Tageslichtlampe? Danke und LG
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Lichtblock replied:
Hi Gabi, vielen Dank für deine Frage! Der Tageslichtmodus unseres Ringlichts misst bei 10 cm Abstand etwa 10000 Lux und bei 40 cm etwa 2500 Lux. Wir nutzen den Modus gerne morgens um schneller wach zu werden. Besten Gruß, dein Lichtblock Team