So you’ve decided to move forward with light therapy to treat your Seasonal Affective Disorder, but you’re not sure where to go from there. Here are six easy things to remember when shopping for a SAD lamp.

• SAD lamps are effective because they simulate natural, outdoor light. They are intended to stimulate your circadian rhythm, and help you to feel the way that you might on a sunny day. Simple? Yes. Effective? You bet.
• Be absolutely positive that the device you go forward with is designed and approved to treat Seasonal Affective Disorder. The devices that do not use the full light-band will not treat SAD as effectively.
• The most effective treatment will be provided a light box that offers a 10,000 lux. If you find one at the bottom of the spectrum, 2,500 lux, you’ll be need to spend 4 times as much time with the device in order to get the same level of treatment.
• SAD light boxes aren’t cheap, and the devices designed specifically for treating SAD can run from $200 well up into the $600 range. If your mid-winter blues are only a ‘mild case,’ you can shop around and find an effective device for as little as $100.
• While the bells and whistles like a ‘Dawn Simulator’  actually improve the effectiveness of treatment, they may not be necessary. Basic devices can still provide relief of your symptoms. Decide what’s right for you, and your budget.
• While you won’t need a prescription to purchase a SAD lamp or light box, you will if you want your insurance to cover it.

Our ‘body mechanics’ are doctors, for the most part, and if we went in to the doctor’s office for every squeak and groan our growing and ageing bodies may experience, we’d risk running up a lot of bills without feeling like a lot was accomplished or fixed. That’s why we go to the books, or internet, to do our own ‘machine’ research. That’s why you’re here now, for that matter. Something is bothering you this winter, and you’re not sure what it is.
If you’ve read at least one blog, ‘how to,’ or news release on Seasonal Affective Disorder, you’ve probably come across the phrase ‘circadian rhythm’ at least twice. Odds are that the author didn’t take the time to explain what that means, too. Well here’s a quick lesson in your Circadian Rhythm.
Best described as your ‘Biological Clock,’ the circadian rhythm is present in every living thing: Plants, animals, even Fungi. It’s Latin for “Circa” (Around) and “Diem” (Day). Which literally means ‘approximately one day.” It is measured by melatonin secretion and your core body temperature, and has been shown in humans to range from 23.5 to 24.5 hours in cycle.

A common ‘disruption’ of your circadian rhythm is commonly called ‘jet lag,’ and Seasonal Affective Disorder is also a symptom of a disrupted circadian Rhythm.  Doctors fear that if a person’s biological clock is disrupted for too long, it could lead to cardiovascular disease, and a depreciation of melatonin could increase a patient’s risk of cancer.

So, in short, Seasonal Affective Disorder is a symptom of a greater problem which shouldn’t go ignored. Get out, get some sun or, in lieu of sunlight, purchase a SAD lamp. Your circadian rhythm will thank you.

Does the sun provide us with Vitamins? The Simple answer is no, it does not. It does, however, play an imperative role in our bodies’ production of Vitamin D.

While the sun doesn’t ‘give’ us Vitamin D, exposure to the sun is the bodies most important ‘source’ of Vitamin D. The UV rays from the sun’s rays trigger the synthesis of this essential Vitamin in the skin.

The primary job of Vitamin D is to ensure that the proper amounts of Phosphorous and Calcium are delivered to the body in order to prevent diseases like rickets in children, and osteomalacia in adults, two skeletal bone-weakening skeletal diseases.

What does this have to do with Seasonal Affective Disorder? Very little, it seems. While having a healthy regimen of vitamins is good for your health, Vitamin D is not directly related to your mid-winter blues. Taking a daily dose of Vitamin D in pill-form is not considered a therapy for SAD. Actually experiencing and being exposed to light is. That’s why Light Therapy is considered the best solution for a patient diagnosed with Seasonal Affective Disorder. In Short, the best advice is this: “Don’t Skip on the vitamins, but vitamins are no substitute for the real thing.” Sunlight effects your body is so many positive ways, it’s difficult to number them all.

As fall approaches, even in the southern states, where the seasonal change is less visceral, Seasonal Affective Disorder is a very real experience.

If you’re reading this, you’re probably already aware of Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), but the long and the short of it is a deficiency of exposure to light, causing a bio-chemical change which appears as depression.

There are a lot of ways to combat this sadness; a healthier diet, surrounding yourself with friends and family (easier during the holiday season), a regular exercise regimen, a vacation to a sunnier climate, and in extreme cases, Light Therapy.

Light Therapy isn’t anything scary, it’s simply a regimented exposure to light, which positively affects your circadian rhythm, helping to keep away those mid-winter doldrums.

Regardless of which part of the world you live in, it is necessary to have a regular exposure to sunlight, and ‘SAD’ness isn’t specific to the colder, more grey climates, either. Even residents of Southern California, the ‘Golden State,’ refer to their ‘June Gloom.’ A time of the year notorious for grey and over-cast skies and clammy weather.

Regardless of where you live, if you’re feeling a bit down, it may be as simple as getting out and getting some sunlight. If that’s not readily available, try Vitamin D, a healthier diet, beginning light exercise, or even a little light therapy to ease your blues.