Seasonal Affective Disorder - How Light Therapy Helps Treat It?

One of the unique forms of depression is the Seasonal affective disorder which is characterized by the onset of depression with the start of the winter months and a full remission during spring time. Seasonal affective disorder is a form of depression that affects about 1 in 20 people around the world on average. One of the common therapies used to treat this disorder is light therapy.

What is light therapy?

Light therapy is the controlled exposure to specific amounts of bright light on a daily basis as a medicinal tool to correct depression and other mental disorders. It has been noticed that the lack of exposure to lights may trigger certain mental disorders within patients and controlled exposure to bright light over a stipulated period of time every day may be able to correct this effectively.

How it works?

Brightness within the daily world is usually measured with the unit of lux. For all types of artificial lights, the measure of luminosity is estimated via this unit. Human beings have an automatic trigger where low light levels for continued periods may cause depression. A clear sunny day outdoors will have a measurement of 10,000 lux and this is the recommended dosage for exposure for people suffering from depression.

It has been seen in studies that people with severe forms of Seasonal Affective disorder responded well to this therapy. They were treated 30 minutes daily with light exposure and over time the study showed that it significantly improved the moods of the people.

Some of the reasons why light therapy proves to be an effective treatment option for SAD include:

• It resets the circadian rhythm - Controlled exposure to light will trigger the hormones that control the circadian rhythms or the daily rhythms of sleeping and walking cycles and thus will help reduce depression.
• It triggers neurotransmitter function - Light exposure triggers certain neurotransmitter functions which work like an antidepressant and thus relieves stress or other internal functions that may cause depression.
• Results in an increase in serotonin levels - This hormone is very important for mood elevation and is known to rise with increased light levels and decrease with low light levels. Controlled exposure can definitely help improve serotonin levels for lessening depression symptoms.

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