This Study Suggests Lighting Temp and Tunable Lighting is Seriously Important to Health and Sleep

The Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) recently found that the right kind of lighting temp at specific intensities does affect health and sleep.

A report from Medical Xpress says PNNL studied residents at a Sacramento nursing home who were diagnosed with dementia. Long-term data was collected on their sleep quality and agitation levels.

In one section of the study, a 24-hour outdoor natural lighting system was adjusted to produce bright, “blue-white” light in the morning and dimmer, warmer light in the evening.

The system’s intensity was lowered during the afternoon, and as evening came, the light would turn warmer and more amber-like. Intensity was then lowered to an all-time low right before bed time.

According the the Medical Xpress report:

“In the tunable lighting setting, ACC residents got almost no blue light at night and a full output of blue light in the morning, compared to the residents in the static lighting conditions. Brown University researchers, working with nursing staff and a questionnaire called the Sleep Disorders Inventory, determined that residents were sleeping better and longer in wings with the adjusted lighting. The tunable LED lights had a statistically significant positive effect compared to the static lighting. Caregivers also reported improvements in residents’ level of agitation.”

Lighting temp & intensity affects on health

According the report, one critical lesson learned is that the wall and floor finishes also affects lighting temp.

This could prove to be an increasingly-important category to multiple verticals: healthcare in any capacity comes to mind; but what about your office?

Is there any credence to the idea that tunable lighting and lighting temp have significant impacts on human health and wellness? This research seems to suggest it does — so how will you use this knowledge in your technology decision-making?

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