Written on November 7, 2008 – 5:29 am | by Maria Mihale |

You don’t have to be some kind of a specialist to know how important the light is to a person and the effect it has on one’s daily mood. More than that, severe underexposure to light leads to things like winter blues and cabin fever. In order to make things right, you can always grab a 500 watt halogen lamp and point it at your face, blinding yourself to everything else.

Philips released a couple of days ago the goLITE BLU, a natural and convenient way to offer quick relief from seasonal mood-related problems. With the end of Daylight Saving time many Americans are affected by the increased darkness and experience what is known as the winter blues. The symptoms of the winter blues are lethargy, lowered mood, problems sleeping, carbohydrate cravings and weight gain.

The Philips goLITE BLU is a new therapy light which was meant to be safe, simple and effective, a perfect solution in order to face the winter blues and overcome it. Scientific research shows that light therapy has a great effect on improving mood and energy, because it regulates the internal body clock or circadian rhythms (the body’s 24-hour cycle of activity and sleep related to light). “The body clock is stimulated by blue light like the blue found in the summer sky. In the winter we get less of this light and so many people suffer from the winter blues”, says Dan Adams, a research manager at Philips Home Healthcare Solutions.

Moreover, the light therapy can be used to beat the winter blues so that you don’t need to resort to all sorts of drugs or artificial stimulants. Results are to be felt within a couple of days with as little 15 to 20 minutes of use per day. “The goLITE BLU represents significant improvements in portable blue light therapy”, says Adams. “Science has shown that to stimulate the body clock we don’t need intense white light. This is because a person’s body clock can respond up to two times greater to blue light than to white light and white light is 50 times more intense. Our Bluewave technology, which is incorporated into the goLITE BLU, dramatically reduces the overall intensity of light as compared to bright white therapy devices and can help minimize potential side effects such as eyestrain, glare and headaches”.

The new goLITE BLU is provided with some innovative aesthetics and advanced features that are meant to provide a comfortable user experience, such as: a soft and comfortable light that eliminates the harsh glare and contrast problems associated with traditional light therapy products, a wide viewing field to enable the user to perform routine activities such as reading, eating, watching television or computer work while using the device, a sleek design that makes the device so very easy to use, pack and store and backlit touchscreen controls that are also simple to use and program, which can be used to adjust light intensity. The goLITE is held up by a nifty magnetic stand that hangs on the back when being transported.

Measuring 5.3 x 5.5 inches and weighing only 12 ounces, the device comes with an integrated clock and timer, rechargeable battery and protective storage case for convenient transport from home to office or while traveling.

The suggested retail price for the goLITE BLU is $279 and can be purchased from LightTherapy.com and from other leading online retailers.

(Source: gadgets.boingboing.net)