Light + Health

In 2017, the Lighting Research Center (LRC) at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute published a study showing that office workers who receive a robust dose of circadian-effective light experience better sleep, and lower levels of depression and stress, than those who spend their days in dim or low light levels.

The Lighting Research Center (LRC) at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute recently released a series of short videos on the science of lighting for human health.

I recently had the pleasure of interviewing Mariana Figueiro, PhD, Professor and Director of the Lighting Research Center at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, New York. The topic: healthy lighting for healthcare buildings. The responses informed an article I wrote for the May 2018 issue of ELECTRICAL CONTRACTOR.

A new LRC study investigated the effectiveness of Apple’s Night Shift screen setting for lessening the impacts of nighttime iPad use on melatonin suppression, a marker of the circadian system. The study found changing screen color alone is insufficient for limiting the impact of portable electronic devices used at night, and that screen brightness should also be reduced.

The lighting industry continues to explore potential benefits of lighting solutions that optimize human health. Studies indicate light has physiological effects that go beyond vision. In recent years, the industry has focused on the impact of light on the human circadian system, and how electric lighting choices thereby can affect circadian health. Mariana G. Figueiro, PhD, Professor and Light and Health Program Director at the Lighting Research Center at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, says there are four major factors in designing a lighting solution that optimizes circadian health.

In the most recent issue of Architectural Lighting, LRC Director Dr. Mariana Figueiro explains how red and blue light can be a means of increasing daytime alertness and nighttime sleep. While tunable lighting systems provide a dynamic lighting solution that create an aesthetically pleasing environment for users, when it comes to circadian-effective lighting, layers of [...]

The increasing popularity of LED technology has raised concerns about retinal damage via a mechanism known as blue-light hazard. Research conducted by the Lighting Research Center demonstrated in a majority of cases LED lighting does not present a greater risk of blue-light hazard than traditional sources such as incandescent.

The Lighting Research Center has expanded its Lighting Patterns for Healthy Buildings website to include designs for the healthcare environment. The website provides lighting patterns, utilizing circadian stimulus (CS) as the primary design component, for three distinct healthcare environments and the needs of their respective end-users: the shiftwork environment, the NICU, and patient rooms.

Among the changes taking place in healthcare is a trend in hospitals toward designing larger, single-patient suites that consist of a bedroom and bathroom, rather than the traditional shared rooms. A recently completed DOE-funded R&D project carried out by Philips Lighting Research North America sought to redefine lighting for healthcare patient suites by developing an innovative LED lighting system that not only was 40% more energy-efficient than traditional fluorescent incumbent technologies, but also met all of the visual and non-visual needs of patients, caregivers, and visitors while improving the overall patient experience.