What To Buy???

Hello hunnie

Well firstly I would recomend the Brite box , it is manufactured by Goldstaff ltd , it is a powerful model producing 10,000 lux and suggests a treatment time of about 30 mins .

heres the web sitewww.britebox.com £199

You will need a more powerful model if you want to limit your treatment time but if you dont mind sitting in front of it for a few hours a day you can get cheaper ones that are 2500lux up .
I have a apollo Giolite coming today , its this big bluewave light hype the company is talking about , although there has been quite negative feedback from this type of light therapy, at least im only renting it for a month, so i can see what the hype is about then give it back if its a load of bollocks ! :D

As for body clocks I hear Lumie Bodyclocks are very good think they range from £55 to £99 , you can buy them from boots and I think argos ?

Hi Patricia

Bear in mind that the original studies used to prove the efficacy of light therapy for SAD used light boxes measuring about 1.2 x 0.6 metres (4 x 2 feet). It is really only anecdotal evidence that is available to suggest that the larger the light box is the better, and I am surprised that no research has been done into the effect of light box size on the therapeutic effect.

Science suggests that the less direct the light source, the more your pupils' will dilate, and the larger the surface area of your retinas' will be bathed in light. You don’t have to look at the sun, to get the benefit from daylight. Therefore, raising the entire surrounding light level in the room may be better than having a light box in your direct field of view? Would a light therapy room be more advantageous than a light box? In the meantime a large and diffuse light box would probably be the best option in my opinion.

Light box manufacturers are now producing smaller, more portable (Costing them less to make and transport, and increasing profit margins.) models, which appeal to the convenience of consumers. However, beyond manufacturer biased, tiny, scientifically insignificant efficacy trials, the newer portable device have never been directly compared to the clinically accepted gold standard of light therapy: 10,000 lux from a large fluorescent light box.

Large light boxes cost nearer £500 if you can find one, and even to make them for yourself (can be hazardous) would cost at least £150 (the cost of a typical smaller device). The biggest light boxes that I have seen available in the UK measure about 0.6 x 0.6 metres (2 x 2 feet). Most widely available light boxes tend to measure around 0.30 x 0.45 metres (1.0 x 1.5 feet). They all quote 10,000 lux at varying distances – the further the better. Remember that the smaller the device, the smaller the image subtended on your retina, the smaller the treatment area for you to move your head around in; and so the more meaningless the 10,000 lux measurement will be.

The only sensible thing to do is to try before you buy. Try as larger light box as you can get and then compare its effects to smaller, cheaper ones, before committing to anything purely on the basis of cost or convenience. Most of us tend to want to control our SAD in a hurry, and commit to a light box without knowing if it is providing the best level of relief available to us or not.

A light box is for life; not just for Christmas.

Joel x