What Makes Us Happy

This premise, that humanity has evolved for million of years to live in, thrive in, and enjoy a specific environment (notably the warm, sunny climate of sub-Saharan Africa), logically assumes that when people begin to replicate their instinctive behavior in things like diet (Mostly meat, nuts, and some vegetables) and lifestyle (Active and sun drenched), their happiness should rise as their genetic makeup begins to resonate with their lifestyle.

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Comments: Many of the articles discussing light and how you feel, come at the topic from the point of view of treating sadness or seasonal affective disorder. This article however is about how light is one of the elements that take us from regular living to happiness. Worth a read to get their insight into the conditions required for happiness.

Related articles

• 9 Things That Happy People Do Regularly (dangerouslee.biz)
• The Rules of Happiness (jenhall86.wordpress.com)

Related posts:

1. New Year Amaryllis – Happy And Alive!
2. How to: Have a Happier Winter
3. Unhappy Holidays and Seasonal Affective Disorder

Unhappy Holidays and Seasonal Affective Disorder

Douse Yourself in Light.
When you wake and want to pull the comforter over your head, flip on the light or throw open the curtains instead. Look into the light. Use the force. Getting light into your eyes. Try a winter light machine or broad spectrum bulbs in your lamps both at work and home to make up for lost UV rays from the sun. Sunlight gets your circadian rhythm on track, helping to manage cortisol (your stress and get-up-and-go hormone) and melatonin (a calm and sleep hormone).

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Comments: For those currently in the grip of an overly long winter, we recommend the 10 tips outlined in this article for ways to beat the winter blues.

Related articles

• Health: Seasonal Affective Disorder (philadelphia.cbslocal.com)

Related posts:

1. Seasonal Affective Disorder – a summer or winter condition?
2. Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) and Perceived Market Risk
3. Circadian rhythms and how to check yours

HEALTH
Seeing the light: Shedding full-spectrum light on ADHD
One of the most surprising ways to help reverse ADHD is actually the simplest–and it’s something you can do on your own at home right away. All it involves is changing light bulbs.

How to Be a Morning Person
Use bright, full-spectrum lighting in your bedroom; turn the light on as soon as you get up.

Breaking Free From the Prison of Depression
There are several methods which help, besides medication. Exercise is an excellent way to improve our attitude. So, is adding more light wherever we work or rest or play. Artificial full spectrum light is very helpful.

Ayurvedic state of mind
-Get some sunshine and fresh air daily. Use full spectrum light bulbs in the darker winter months.

The importance of light
SAD, or Seasonal Affective Disorder, a type of depression common among people living in northern climates who have short amounts of daylight hours during the winter. Deprived of sunlight, these folks really start to feel depressed. Put them under a light box or full-spectrum light bulbs and they perk up enormously!

BIRDCARE
research on plant light 1
Five minutes after I switched on the plant light, she began to sing. After a while she came on my shoulder to show her thanks to me,

Bird Term of the Day: UVA & UVB
If natural light is unavailable, another choice is full-spectrum lighting, which mimics the sun’s rays, providing both UVA and UVB rays. The right type of full-spectrum light can make it almost like your pet bird has its own little sun right in your house.

A Rainbow Lorikeet’s Habitat
Like all birds, rainbow lorikeets require a natural lighting cycle as well as natural lighting. Natural sunlight contains UVB rays, which are necessary for birds to produce vitamin D.

African Grey Parrots’ Meals
A greater selection is to deliver full spectrum light for your parrot. An African Grey will get vitamin K from the light, just as it would if living outside.

Related posts:

1. Full-spectrum Light (issue 27)
2. Full-Spectrum Light (issue 45)
3. Full-Spectrum Light (issue 18)

REPTILECARE
Lack of UV light harming tuatara
Without full-spectrum lighting, tuatara can suffer nutritional secondary hyperparathyroidism (NSHP), which causes bones to break and other painful conditions.

Supplying Light for Bearded Dragon Cages
Fact is, the pogona vitticeps needs a full spectrum UV bulb, a basking light and the correct heat gradient throughout their habitat to keep them healthy and happy.

BIRDCARE
Essential lighting for a healthier bird
Select full spectrum bulbs designed specifically for birds and look for bulbs that emit light in the ultra violet wavelength. These bulbs replicate natural sunlight to provide all the beneficial properties of sunlight

HEALTHCARE
The “Sleep Mistake” Which Boosts Your Risk of Cancer
Most incandescent- and fluorescent lights emit very poor quality light. What your body needs for optimal functioning is the full-spectrum light you get outdoors. Using full spectrum light bulbs in your home and office can help ameliorate this lack of high quality sunlight during the day.

Uses of Full Spectrum Lights
Full-spectrum lighting fixtures provide an artificial simulation of the spectrum available in natural sunlight. The body uses and needs natural sunlight to function properly

FISHCARE
Koko’s Goldfish Forum
Full spectrum lights are the heathiest for goldfish. If you are interested in enhancing their lives a little, you could check those out. I have them over my breeding pond. Sunlight has the same effect on fish as humans. The light aids your skin as well as the fishes in producing vitamins and therefore making you healthier.

HOME DECORATING
How to Redecorate My Food Pantry
A food pantry is generally an unloved room in the house, solely functional rather than aesthetically pleasing. A well-decorated food pantry can become as visually pleasing, and as useful, as a nice kitchen.

MISCELLANEOUS
You might be a rockhound if
You begin fussing because the light strips you installed on your bookshelves aren’t full spectrum.

HEALTH – EYECARE
How to Avoid Eyestrain While Working at a computer
Light your work area well. Use full spectrum bulbs. They duplicate natural sunlight and are easier on the eyes

Related posts:

1. Full-Spectrum Light (issue 21)
2. Full-spectrum light (issue 28)
3. Who’s talking about full-spectrum lighting – issue 5

HEATH
Blue Light May be Key to Fighting Winter Blues
Most people use incandescent lighting in their homes, but this is not a high-quality light, nor one that is recommended if you suffer from the winter blues. Ideally, you’ll want to use only high-quality full-spectrum light bulbs in your home and workspace.

Acquiring Vitamin D through your…eyes?
According to two researchers, German Ophthalmologist Fritz Hollwich, MD as well as John Ott, Hon. D. Sci, the array of bodily organs and systems that depend on full spectrum light is astounding. “When the eyes are exposed to natural light the pituitary gland, thyroid, adrenal glands, ovaries, testes, pancreas, liver, and kidneys all function better.”

Sunlight emerging as proven treatment for breast cancer, prostate cancer and other cancers
Johns Hopkins University Medical School conducted a ten-year epidemiological study that showed exposure to full-spectrum light (including the ultraviolet frequencies) is positively related to the preventionof breast, colon and rectal cancers.

REPTILECARE
What Can I Feed My Wild Brown Anole Lizard?
They require full-spectrum light during the day and temperatures between 75 and 85 degrees Fahrenheit.

Keeping Your Reptile Warm and Healthy
Full spectrum UV bulbs simulate the different degrees of natural sunlight, but nothing can duplicate the real thing. Whenever possible, place your lizard’s habitat in a location that allows access to natural sunlight.

HOME DECORATING
Customize your Kitchen for the Rainy Days!
Installing full-spectrum light bulbs or additional bulbs of low-wattage are also some of the things one can do in creating a cheerful space.

Beauty Lighting – Looking Your Best
Aside from using the right cosmetics, there are a few things you can do in regards to light to increase your outer beauty. First of all, pay attention to the light in your house

WORK BETTER
11 Ways To Be Happier At Work
Dr. Kryder says the best way to recover from a bad encounter at the office that’s leaving you feeling anxious or upset is to take a walk—outside! “Full-spectrum light such as sunlight has been shown to elevate mood,” she says.

PLANTCARE
Indoor Container Garden 4
This is video 4 of my experiment growing vegetables indoors. This is after 3 full weeks of growth. I also got a smaller full spectrum light bulb (27 watt cfl, 100 watt incandescent equivalent) and a hangable lamp.

BIRDCARE
Parrots and the Benefits of Full Spectrum Lighting
Did you know that birds see much more vibrant and enriching colors when exposed to full spectrum bird lights or natural sun light?

Related posts:

1. What is the relationship between sunlight and breast cancer?
2. Full-Spectrum Light (issue 42)
3. Full-Spectrum Light (issue 12)

The article discusses what our eyes do for us – not only do they allow us to see but they also house sensors that detect the rise and fall of daylight. The body uses this information to regulate an estimated 10% of our genes.

It is the light-sensitive melatonin that does most of the work as it alerts the body to the approximate time of day. The issue for modern humans is that we are bombarded with artificial light at hours of the day where there would normally be no sunlight available.

The availability of artificial light and its disruption of our circadian rhythms not only affects our sleep cycles but may also be contributing to a host of diseases.

“Light works as if it’s a drug, except it’s not a drug at all,” said George Brainard, a neurologist at Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia.

The question is then raised of how much artificial light is too much?

In research published in March in The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism, a team at the Harvard Medical School reported that ordinary indoor lighting before bedtime suppressed melatonin in the brain, even delaying production of the hormone for 90 minutes after the lights were off, compared with people exposed to only dim light.

When looking at what effects the evening light has over and above sleep interference, researchers found the following:

• a report published last year in the journal PNAS found that mice exposed to light at night gained more weight than those housed in normal light, even though both groups consumed the same number of calories.

• in 2007, the World Health Organization declared shift work a probable carcinogen. Body clock disruptions “can alter sleep-activity patterns, suppress melatonin production and disregulate genes involved in tumor development,” the agency concluded.

The article concludes with the idea that we are on the edge of a lighting revolution where a new generation of lights and screens will be created which change wavelength depending on the time of day.

Related posts:

1. Jet Lag and Light
2. Vitamin D Deficiencies At Epidemic Levels
3. Blue Light may Improve Alertness

While 5% of the population are considered to be effected by the winter version, it is now estimated that up to 1% of the population have the summer variant.

A recent article discussing this variant explained that the depression angle can be exacerbated by disrupted schedules, body image issues, and financial worries due to expenses of summer holidays, babysitters, and camps for kids for working parents but the underlying issue is still light.

“The long summer days may also be misaligning your circadian rhythms, experts say, so another treatment plan could involve a “combination of getting early morning sunlight (30 to 60 minutes daily), which shifts the body clock forward, and low-dose melatonin, a hormone that helps regulate sleep-wake cycles,” notes MSNBC.”

Related posts:

1. Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) and Perceived Market Risk
2. Unhappy Holidays and Seasonal Affective Disorder
3. Why are we Vitamin D deficient?

HEALTH
Nature – waiting to help when we’re ready
Another bonus that comes from Nature is exposure to natural light. Not only do we re-connect with the earth but we can feed from full spectrum light.

5 Ways to See The Bright Side (It Can Help You Lose Weight!)
Spend some time in the sun or under a special light that simulates sunlight. Many people suffer from Seasonal Affective Disorder, me included. I have difficulties being in the sun, so I use a full spectrum light

Sleep & Chronic Fatigue
When it is dark outside melatonin production increases the ability to sleep. Morning light signals the pituitary gland to stop producing melatonin, but for some people the light may not be strong enough, especially during the winter time.

Alternative to amitriptyline (for fibromyalgia) during pregnancy …?
I have heard some patients do well with massage, warm water therapy, accupuncture, yoga, biofeedback, light therapy with full spectrum lights,exercise, dietary changes may all be areas you want to explore.

BIRDCARE
Do I Need Full Spectrum Lighting for My Parrot?
It provides lighting that is much closer to the type of light a parrot would receive in its natural environment. By doing this, you can provide for the overall health of the bird in many ways.

How Can I Encourage My Keets to Mate?
Step 4: Provide full-spectrum light to induce breeding. Gradually increase the length of time per day the birds are exposed to light over a period of weeks. Parakeets require at least 13 hours of light a day to trigger them to breed.

REPTILECARE
Bearded Dragons Cage
Two females, one male bearded dragon enclosure. 55 Gallon Long, Calcium Sand, yellow(I think Zoo-Med), basking rock, climbiing rock for basking, big water bowl, red basking light (I don’t know what size), 75 watt halogen UVA bulb mainly for basking and a natural sunlight look, 10.0 UVB/UVA full spectrum light, mealworm dish and salad plate/bowl.

PLANTCARE
Benefits Of A Full Spectrum Led Grow Light
The 300 watt led grow light is one of the most popular styles used in hydroponic and traditional indoor gardening these days. The plants themselves are healthier than those grown under traditional grow lights.

Herb Vs. Indoor Herb Garden
The more sun the vegetable garden gets, the more productive it will be. If there is no enough light from a window, growth of herb plants can be supplemented with grow lights. These special lights differ from regular light bulbs because they shine with the full spectrum light that plants require.

HEALTH – EYECARE

Eye Exercises
The sun, or full spectrum light, stimulate rods & cones of the retina. Full spectrum lighting in classrooms show faster learning, grade improvement, and reduction of infections in children.

Related posts:

1. Full-spectrum lighting (issue 7)
2. Full-Spectrum Light (issue 25)
3. Full-Spectrum Light (issue 13)

Light Health For Pet Birds
Exposure to natural light is very important for the proper absorption and utilization of calicum in pet birds.

Full Spectrum Lighting – Use it to Feel Better
Bright light therapy is key to raising serotonin levels and improving mood. Full spectrum lighting answers: what, how, when and why.

Nan Waldman’s answer to What’s the best way to feel awake, fresh …
Replace every light bulb in your bedroom, bathroom and kitchen with full spectrum light bulbs. You may be dragging on grey Monday mornings in the middle of …

Benefits of Full Spectrum Lighting | Thehumanstain.net
Fluorescent lights have become commonplace inside many homes and offices because they are a rather inexpensive form of light. But as a result people are no…

Feeling depressed about winter? 5 ways to beat the winter blues …
Create artificial light in your home by changing your standard light bulbs to full-spectrum ones. Ultraviolet rays to infrared plus rainbow colors and a variety of shades in between make full-spectrum lights ideal for the winter season. ..

Stitchqueries: What kind of lighting? | Stitching the Night Away
Bad lighting can make your stitching seem difficult and really strain your eyes, so this week’s question is an important one.

Advantages of Full Spectrum Lights | Home and Garden Today
It’s vital to spend time in real light to function in the world but not everyone knows that. As a result a lot of people spend time getting inadequate …

Eye Exercises
Sight directly effects brain and body chemistry in less than 1/100 of a second. What you see influences body chemistry.

Related posts:

1. Full-Spectrum Light (issue 23)
2. Full-Spectrum Light (issue 13)
3. Full-spectrum lighting (issue 9)