Seasonal affective disorder (SAD), a syndrome characterized by recurrent depressions that occur annually at the same time each year, affects an estimated 4 percent to 6 percent of the general population. It's the prevalence of SAD and other depressive disorders that have pioneered the discovery of an effective treatment method: Light therapy.
A report of the study, based on a meta-analysis, also found the effects of light therapy, or phototherapy, are comparable to those found in many clinical studies of antidepressant drug therapy for mood disorders. (The use of bright artificial light to treat SAD was first described in the Archives of General Psychiatry in 1984.)
Meta-Analysis Results
The studies used in the meta-analysis were grouped into four categories that were limited to adults, ages 18-65, who met a certain mood disorder diagnosis:
Dawn simulation is a technique that attempts to replicate an earlier dawn through exposure to artificial light. This treatment strives to simulate the increased intensity of sunlight of a naturally occurring summer sunrise. According to the report, the meta-analysis demonstrated statistically significant treatment effects for SAD, dawn simulation for SAD and bright light treatment of non-seasonal depression.
American Journal of Psychiatry, April 2005, Volume 162, Number 4: 656-662
Medical News Today April 9, 2005
Spring is definitely upon us, bringing with it warmer temperatures and, perhaps more importantly, the sunshine that comes with them. I'm convinced that natural sunlight exposure is absolutely crucial to your overall well-being and study after study show that light therapy, when natural sunlight is unavailable, is your next best option.
The research summarized here is of particular interest to me because it not only supports the use of light therapy for the treatment of seasonal affective disorder, it also shows its effectiveness in the treatment of non-seasonal depression, even in comparison to anti-depressant medications.
Of course, this should really come as no surprise here. I have been telling you about the benefits of light therapy in treating depression for years, and the evidence to that effect just gets more compelling with each new study that comes out.
The fact that sunlight and natural light therapy can help to rid you of depression is just another example of the fact that, when you take the proper approach to your health and provide your body with all that it needs, drugs are rarely, if ever, necessary.
Full-spectrum light therapy is a crucial component to my overall treatment approach for depression. In my experience, patients who use it tend to feel a profound increase in energy and improvement in mood and sense of well-being within two or three days after starting treatments. In fact, I feel it is so important that we are now offering BioPure Full-Spectrum Lights in our Web store.
There are a number of additional treatments I consider to be fundamental components of a treatment plan for any type of depression. They include:
Optimizing your diet using my nutrition guidelines, in combination with metabolic typing, to determine the foods you need to be eating, in the amounts you need to be eating them.
Paying particular attention to avoiding grains and sugar because of their specific effects on depression.
Testing for and optimizing your vitamin D levels.
Getting adequate exercise.
Taking a high-quality source of omega-3 fatty acids.
Optimizing the function of your digestive tract, especially your gallbladder, by, again, eating well and exercising, along with consuming liver cleansing foods like beets, carrots, artichokes, lemons, parsnips, dandelion greens, watercress and burdock root.
If you think you might be suffering from seasonal affective disorder, or know someone else who suspects they are, I urge you to take my free SAD test today, and get started on your path to optimal health.
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