Wellness Wise Tip Sheet -- Your Wellness Guide

Important Consumer Info For New
Light-Based Wellness Gadgets

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As seen on "Good Morning Arizona" (KTVK-TV) on January 9, 2004.  For more information on how light can help you in your life, see the Special Consumer Series on light here.  Additional consumer information for each of these light-based gadgets can be found here.

1. LED HANDHELDS for Pain Relief:  Hear ye arthritis sufferers!  What was once developed for NASA astronauts has now found a mainstream home in the form of pain relief.  Handheld light-emitting diode (LED) devices now are approved by the FDA for home use.  LEDs are electronic components that produce light.

You take the device and put it on the affected area (not against any open wounds), which also includes regions of muscle pain, tension, and spasms.  The theory is that the colored and infrared LEDs beam photons into the affected inflamed or damaged cells, which triggers a natural response for reduced swelling, increased circulation, and improved mobility.  In the end, your cell does all the work after the device prompts it to initiate a reaction – a wonderful, natural healing effect.  Also, consumers should know that infrared is different than UV (no UV rays are emitted); infrared is at the opposite end of the spectrum and is not known to have cancer-causing properties.

It is important to realize that more companies will be getting into this market, some more reputable than others.  Look for a well-established company that sells a lot of units and has a thoughtful, comprehensive website.  Make sure the company has a liberal warrantee, such as a one-year, unconditional warrantee/return policy.  Also, because light technology can be technical, read up on the specifications and learn what they mean.  If a company isn’t giving you the full specifications, even upon request, then move to a different supplier.  The top specification for this product type would be “nanometers near infrared,” usually listed as “nm” or “nanometers.”  The FDA has approved these colored and infrared LEDs for having healing properties if the product falls between the spectrum range of 620-1000 nm.  Finally, the consumer should know that this is not a miracle device or pain killer.  However, it is used for pain therapy with proven results.  I recommend looking into Light Force Therapy (www.lightforcetherapy.com) who makes several handheld products for the home user.

2. COMPACT LED DEVICES TO IMPROVE MOOD AND SLEEP PATTERNS: Once again, LEDs are coming to our rescue.  If you suffer from Seasonal Affective Disorder, don’t get enough sunlight in the winter or due to working indoors, or travel frequently and experience jet lag, bright-white LED devices in compact form will help you.

To understand the significance of this advancement, light therapy used to be in the form of big, heavy boxes (at least three feet by three feet) that contained special fluorescent lights.  You would sit in front of these boxes for hours, with some people waking up at 4 a.m. just to have enough time to sit in front of the box and reap the benefits.  These boxes also emitted UV rays and were not easily mobile (difficult to bring them to your office because of the weight and size, for example).

With LED light-therapy devices, there are no UV rays, they weight only about eight ounces, can be transported in your purse, take 15-30 minutes to reap benefits, consume very little power, and are brighter and at a more perfect wavelength than the old boxes.  In fact, LEDs are one of the closest light sources to actual sunlight when compared on a Spectral Power Distribution chart.  You can use these devices in an airplane, at work, while eating breakfast, or anywhere.

As a consumer, you should know that these gadgets are not cheap because LEDs are still expensive to produce and because there are relatively few related product manufacturers.  This will change in the future.  Also, you want to ask for the lux produced by the device – a measurement of light.  It ideally should produce between 5,000 and 10,000 lux.  I recommend The Litebook and The Time Traveler products by The Litebook Company (www.litebook.com –click the link on the non-U.S. side for more info and products); the company is currently undergoing FDA approval.  Also, a visor version is available from Gaiam, www.gaiam.com, but ask about the lux reading for any visor.  An excellent book on this subject is When Your Body Gets The Blues by Marie-Annette Brown, Ph.D., R.N., and Jo Robinson.

3. DAWN SIMULATOR ALARM CLOCKS: Waking up to a loud beep or music isn’t the most pleasant thing in the world.  Maybe that’s why I hit the snooze button for an hour?  But there is a better way to wake up – more naturally and with a cheery attitude. 

Waking up to sunshine is better and easier for you.  That is why your eyelids are so thin – morning light filters through the lid, triggering a physical waking response.  However, for those of us who sleep in dark rooms, sleep on the west side of the house, or have to get up before the sun shines, there are now clocks on the market that simulate a sunrise and trick your body into thinking ideal sunbeams are knocking at your dream door. 

The clock’s alarm triggers a replicated sunrise using the device’s attached light or other lights in your room.  Over a 30 (average), 60, 90, or 120-minute period, the light gradually gets brighter until you naturally awake.  Some devices also include a radio or beeper that also starts at the peak brightness, as well as a dusk or sunrise simulator to help you wind down at night.

Not yet FDA approved but certainly proven through numerous studies, available dawn simulator products are usually found online.  Make sure you are comfortable with the warrantee/return policy before buying (hopefully a one-year unconditional term).  Also, find out how bright the light gets when it peaks; ideally, it would be bright enough to read by.  Of course, you also will need to test the clock after purchase to make sure the light will wake you up.  Place the clock near your head to make it more efficient.  Also, if this clock will be for a child’s room, make sure the globe is not made of glass.  Two companies I recommend are Soleil (www.sunalarm.com) and Bio-Brite (www.biobrite.com). 

4. SKIN CLARITY DEVICES: For acne and chronic blemish sufferers, a brand-new consumer-based product is now on the market that uses light to clear up skin issues.

While lasers have been used on an out-patient basis to fix skin imperfections and acne scarring, home users can now achieve proactive benefits with light therapy.  Not yet FDA approved, colored and infrared fluorescent lights are placed in front of the face or affected skin area to reduce bacterial infection and to heal wounds.  The user would keep a regular therapeutic routine of light treatment to maintain the benefits, usually 15 minutes per day.

Consumers need to educate themselves on the technical specifications, as well as look for reputable companies that offer liberal information, links to studies that support the product’s benefits, and a generous warrantee/return policy.  Also, since these products are not usually using LED lights but rather fluorescent lighting, don’t forget to ask tough questions about the emission of UV rays (you don’t want any if possible).  I recommend you look at the Striae Infrared Light Therapy Unit (www.acnesystem.com), which offers a lot of tangible information online including important nanometer specifications.  Or Gaiam also sells a Clarity Skincare Light at www.gaiam.com, which also includes an air ionizer built into the unit.

Wellness Wise Tip Sheets Related to Lighting:
Essential Questions For Daylight-Lighting Bulb Shopping
Healthy Lighting Resources
Essential Consumer Info For New Light-Based Wellness Gadgets

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