We are officially in Winter. The days are darker longer in the mornings and get darker earlier, reducing daylight hours. And in between the hours of darkness is grey, rainy and windy weather. Grey, dismal and dark days aren’t the greatest for our health and wellbeing. With sunlight hours reduced and people spending more time indoors, we are deprived of natural light, which is good for our health, and this can cause some people to experience SAD (Seasonal Affective Disorder) or ‘winter depression’. To combat the effects of SAD and reduce those winter blues, a daylight therapy lamp can work wonders.
But what is SAD? SAD can have many symptoms and can include (not an exhaustive list – if you want to know more, visit the NHS SAD webpage):
- a persistent low mood
- a loss of pleasure or interest in normal everyday activities
- irritability
- feeling lethargic (lacking in energy) and sleepy during the day
- sleeping for longer than normal and finding it hard to get up in the morning
- feelings of despair, guilt and worthlessness
- low self-esteem
- tearfulness
- feeling stressed or anxious
- a reduced sex drive
- becoming less sociable
Before you start self-diagnosing, having some, or even all, of the above symptoms doesn’t necessarily mean you suffer with SAD. But there is help available for the above symptoms and SAD sufferers in the form of daylight therapy lamps. I have been trying out the Beurer TL 30 Daylight Therapy Lamp that uses LED light technology to simulate daylight which can help to alleviate the effects of those symptoms to make you feel happier and give you a much better sense of wellbeing.
Beurer are specialists in medical and wellbeing devices. Founded in Germany in 1919 making heat pads (electric blankets) they have over 100 years’ experience in the wellbeing space and offer a range of more than 500 products. With the cold and darker winter days influencing people’s health and wellbeing, with the sunlight hours reduced (and spending more time indoors as well) I was happy to try out one of their TL 30 daylight therapy lamp. The purpose of a daylight therapy lamp is to reduce the symptoms caused by light deprivation and help to increase your mood and wellbeing by simulating sunlight.
The Beurer TL 30 Daylight Therapy Lamp is a compact and portable energy-saving LED therapy lamp that is perfect for on your desk or even on the move. It’s LED technology makes it exceptionally bright with even illumination. It’s flicker-free and UV-free and is perfect for giving you a dose of daylight for a sense of wellbeing in the dark winter months, helping to increase your mood and can help relieve symptoms of SAD.
In the box:
- Daylight Therapy Lamp
- Holder
- Storage Pouch
- Mains Adapter
- Instructions
The TL 30 Daylight Therapy Lamp is a slim, lightweight rectangular LED light, measuring 15.6 x 2.6 x 23.6cm. It simulates daylight with a light intensity of 10,000 lux (at a distance 10cm). When switched on it is extremely bright, I could sit beside it and happily read (the light surface measures approx. 20x12cm). It can be used horizontally or vertically with its removable stand and takes up very little space and even comes supplied with its own storage pouch/carry bag.
Lack of direct sunlight has an effect upon the human body. Sunlight indirectly controls the production of melatonin, which is released into the blood only in darkness. This hormone tells the body when it is time to sleep. In the months when there is less sunlight, therefore, production of melatonin increases. This makes it harder to get up in the morning, since the body‘s functions are shut down. If you use the daylight therapy lamp immediately after waking up in the morning – thus as early as possible – you can end the production of melatonin so that your mood can take a positive turn. In addition, light deficiency also hinders production of the happiness hormone serotonin, which decisively affects our wellbeing. Application of light involves quantitative changes in hormones and neurotransmitters in the brain, which can affect our level of activity, our feelings and our wellbeing. Light can help reverse this hormone imbalance. To compensate for such a hormonal imbalance, the daylight therapy lamp can create a suitable replacement for natural sunlight.
Why would anyone need to use a Daylight Therapy Lamp? Well, these lamps are used to compensate for the effects of a lack of natural light, sunlight, by simulating daylight over 10,000 lux (over a distance of 10cm). The light can influence the human body and be used as a treatment or as a preventative measure for a wide range of symptoms. Normal electric light is not sufficient to influence the hormonal balance as in a well-lit office the illuminance level amounts to just 500 lux. We all know that a good dose of sunlight can influence our mood and make us feel better and healthier.
To get the best out of the lamp it should be used at a distance of between 10 and 30cm. Depending on the distance you are away from it determines the length of time you should use if for:
- 10cm should be 30 minutes (10,000 lux)
- 20cm minutes for 60 minutes (5,000 lux)
- 30cm for 120 minutes (2,500 lux)
You won’t get immediate results from using a daylight therapy lamp. You are not going to immediately improve your mood just by switching it on. The effects of the lamp are cumulative, so you should use it for at least 7 days, in the morning if possible before starting to notice any difference. The more you use it, the more you should start to notice and feel the results.
Overall, this is a very compact and bright lamp that delivers a very even light over its surface. It is cheap to run as it uses LED technology, so you are not going to notice any real increase in your electricity bills. And as it is a lamp, the only user input required is pressing the on/off button and sitting close to it.
Does it work? To be perfectly honest, that really isn’t something that I can measure. I have been using it for a while now and all I can say is that I don’t feel particularly moody or irritable, sad or depressed and I don’t feel as tired as I normally am. On that basis, I would probably have to say that yes, it is having a positive effect.
As a lamp it is perfect with a very bright, even and flicker free clean light. The only small negative I can find is that I would have liked the power button to be a bit more responsive – it is flush against the housing so doesn’t protrude but if anything feels slightly too recessed, making it not always responsive when pushed (unless you press with you nail).
I liked that it can stand horizontally or vertically by moving the holder and I loved that is portable – it comes with its own travel bag for the light (although not the power adapter). There is a rubber grip around the edge of the frame which helps it stay put on the desk. It is very lightweight so will easily fit in your bag if you did want to take it anywhere with you.
The lamp looks a like a mini whiteboard, so when it is turned off it doesn’t look intrusive on the desk – although with its travel bag/storage pouch you could always store in it a desk drawer if needed.
It is recommended that you use it for 2 hours per day to get the best results and benefit from it. It uses energy saving LED technology and is also UV free, so it doesn’t cause any harm to your skin or eyes from the damaging effects of UV rays.
It is very easy to use but if I had to make any changes it would be a more responsive power button as mentioned earlier and adding a timer – if it needs to be used for a certain amount of time per day, I think that a timer or auto-shutoff would be an excellent addition.
If you are looking for a Daylight Therapy Lamp to help with winter blues, SAD or just to improve your mood caused through lack of daylight during the darker winter months, the Beurer TL 30 is a good and bright white LED lamp that is a certified medical device. Small and portable but still producing 10,000 lux to simulate daylight to help you achieve a better wellbeing and can promote better sleep whilst helping to improve your mood.
Rating: 4/5
RRP: £54.99
For more information or to buy, visit www.beurer.com/uk. Also available to buy from Amazon here.