Light + Health

On June 4, 2024, Fitwel, a leading global healthy building certification, released Version 3 (“v3”) of its standard. This update strives to incorporate the latest public health research to optimize real estate assets for health and quality of life, future-proof them for climate adaptation, and maximize real estate value. Overall, the Fitwel standard is guided [...]

On May 24, 2024, the FDA denied all Soft Lights Foundation petitions to regulate LED products, in a letter. According to The Soft Lights Foundation website, “The decision by the FDA to not regulate LED products and to not collaborate with any other federal agency illegally pushes regulation of LED products onto state and local governments.” As [...]

  IES has published ANSI/IES RP-46-23, Recommended Practice: Supporting the Physiological and Behavioral Effects of Lighting in Interior Daytime Environments. It is designed to be a companion to IES TM-18, translating the basic science of how light affects visual, circadian, neuroendocrine, and neurobehavioral responses in daytime interior environments, such as schools and offices. This recommended practice (RP) [...]

  I watched the virtual presentation, Better Than Blue Light, by Dr. Jay Neitz of the University of Washington last week that was presented by LEDucation. I’m not an expert on Light + Health, but I’ll try to explain it as best I can. Dr. Neitz claims that particular combinations of blue and yellow light [...]

Here is a summary of the WELL Building Standard Version 2.0 Lighting Requirements: Feature L01: Light Exposure – Provide indoor light exposure through daylight and electric light strategies. Option 1: Daylight simulation The project demonstrates, through computer simulations, that one of the following conditions are achievedOption 2: Interior layout One of the following requirements is [...]

    A small town in the Netherlands, Zuidhoek-Nieuwkoop, has become the first town in the world to install red street lights. The primary motivation was to protect local, rare bat populations. The red light isn’t perceived by the bats but allows humans to see at night. The red street lights are manufactured by the [...]

  CES 2024 concluded last week, in Las Vegas, NV. While every imaginable type of tech was there, there were some lighting product releases. Here are two of them: NanoLeaf released its Sky Expansion Pack. See first two images. This NanoLeaf Skylight is designed to look and feel like a skylight. By replicating a dynamic [...]

  During the Summer of 2023 back-to-school season, Walmart piloted sensory-friendly store hours, each Saturday from 8am-10am. During these hours, Walmart stores turned down the lights where possible, put a static image on the TV walls, and turned off the radio. Walmart received overwhelmingly positive responses. As a result, Walmart has now designated 8am-10am every [...]

  I researched for hours trying to get a complete picture of the origins, drivers, products, and claims around “less than 2% blue light.” As long as 6 years ago, Circadian Zirclight claimed their office products switched from conventional blue pump white LEDs during the day, to violet pump white LEDs in the evening for [...]