SAD (Seasonal Affective Disorder), is an officially recognised condition that is thought to affect at least 2 million people in the UK.
Hundreds of years ago, most people only ever used to work outdoors, now less than 10% of the population work in natural outdoor light.
In fact, it has been proven that our bodies are affected by the amount of natural light we absorb, a condition made worse by the modern lifestyles we lead, for instance, our body clock, aka the ‘Circadian Rhythms' affect how we sleep, how happy we are, how social we are, and what we feel like eating, and these rhythms need proper regulated natural light cues, when these cues are disturbed, our physical system is disrupted and our body clocks lose sync, typically giving rise to the following symptoms :
· Lethargy, lacking in energy.
· Sleep problems, finding it hard to stay awake during the day
· Loss of libido
· Anxiety, inability to cope
· Social problems, irritability
· Depression
· Craving for carbohydrates and sweet foods, leading to weight gain
Lack of light also causes an increase in the production of Melatonin (the hormone that makes us sleepy at night), and a reduction of Serotonin, the lack of which causes depression. The exposure to bright light therapy reverses the process.
By providing summertime levels of light during the winter you can successfully alleviate the symptoms of SAD with the result that SAD sufferers can lead a happier and vastly improved life.
Micromark SAD Therapy Light (£53.99)
There is light at the end of the tunnel though, as SAD sufferers can benefit hugely from Light Box therapy treatment, often feeling the benefit within a few weeks of usage.
(The Micromark Light therapy Box shown above, contains 72W of daylight balanced energy saving lamps emitting 10,000 lux, which is almost identical to real sunlight)
