How Safe is Bright Light Therapy?

If you’re suffering from Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) or a variety of other conditions, you may have heard that bright light therapy can help ease your symptoms. But you may be wondering: How safe is bright light therapy, really?

Overall, bright light therapy is a very safe, low-risk method of treating many of the symptoms of SAD, jet lag, and other conditions. When using a specially manufactured bright light box, potentially dangerous UV rays (which you would get with normal sunlight) are not present, so you don’t risk sunburns, sun stroke, or other related complications.

However, as with any treatment, there are some side effects to consider with bright light therapy, including:

• Headaches
• Eyestrain
• Nausea
• Irritability or agitation
• Mania, euphoria, hyperactivity, or agitation (for those with bipolar disorder)

For many, these side effects will improve or go away within a few days of starting treatment, as some of them are just related to getting used to the light exposure. You can make a few changes to your bright light therapy routine to improve these side effects, including decreasing your treatment time, moving farther from the light box, breaking daily sessions into two shorter time periods, or changing the time of day you treat.

As always, if you are concerned about the side effects you do experience or may experience, contact your doctor.

Your Online Source for Quality Light Boxes

At The SunBox Company, we provide high-quality light boxes for the treatment of symptoms related to SAD and a variety of other physical and mental ailments. Contact us to discover how our affordable, effective solutions can ease your symptoms.