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The body clock coordinates daily (circadian) rhythms that the body experiences through the day. These rhythms include the cycle of waking and sleeping, the rise and fall of blood pressure and heart rate, and daily rhythms affecting gastrointestinal, renal, and immune system activity.
The body clock aligns its timing to the external environment through exposure to light, normally sunlight. However, artificial light of an appropriate form can also be used. This Normally, very high intensities of artificial light intensity are needed to influence these rhythms. However, the artificial light levels need not be bright, if appropriate light wavelengths of light are used. Different wavelengths of light are perceived as different colors.
Light therapy
can be used to synchronize sleep patterns, in a manner similar to the wy
sunlight normally synchronizes the body clock with the external day and
night. If the clock is stimulated by light before it expects the
sun to have risen, it will reset to an earlier time. If stimulated by light
after the time it expects the sun to have set, the body clock will reset itself to a later
time.
Light therapy can be used to correct
sleep phase disorders, which occur when a person's internal biological clock is
delayed or advanced from the external environment. People with Delayed Sleep Phase
Syndrome (DSPS) who are often younger, find it difficult to fall asleep until the early morning
hours.
People with Advanced Sleep Phase Syndrome
(ASPS)
who are often older, tend to become tired in the late
afternoon or early evening.
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information on aging and the body clock
For people with a delayed circadian rhythm, the internal biological clock can be
shifted to an earlier position and aligned with the external environment through exposure
to appropriately timed light in the morning. Similarly, for people whose internal clocks
are set too early, the internal clock can be shifted to a later time with evening light
exposure.
However, the timing of light treatment with respect to the position of the internal clock is critical. People with delayed or advanced sleep phase syndromes would be well advised to consult with a qualified sleep therapist before embarking on a program of light therapy.
The
proposition by Sunnex Biotechnologies more than a decade ago that
wavelength is as important as intensity in shifting the body clock has
been confirmed by research groups around the world over the past 5 years.
Independent university and military laboratories are now confirming that
the most effective wavelengths for shifting the body clock are provided by
the patented Sunnex Biotechnologies low-intensity Green LIGHT therapy
technology.
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for more information on why the low-intensity Lo-LIGHT is as effective as bright
light therapy
The patented Lo-LIGHT technology comfortably
shifts the internal body clock as effectively as bright white light.
Lo-LIGHT lamps screen out the
hazardous wavelengths of blue visible light. The Lo-LIGHT can
therefore be used by people whose conditions make
them sensitive to eye damage. This includes people with
pre-existing ocular conditions, those with diabetes or other diseases that predispose them
to retinal damage, or those taking photosensitizing medications or remedies like St Johns
Wort.
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here for more information on Seasonal Changes, Light Exposure, The Body Clock, and SAD
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