Lighting is key to a Healthy Home. Lighting affects our sleep cycle and if we’re not getting enough (and the right kind of) sleep, our health can suffer significantly. The wrong kind of lighting can also cause unnecessary headaches, eye strain and more (see Flicker below).
There are two main areas of concern in a home – blue light around bedtime and flicker.
Blue Light – our bodies have a circadian rhythm – kind of like a clock – which tells the body when it is time to wake up and when it is time to sleep. In our our modern day lives, we are surrounded by blue light all the time from our computers, phones, tvs and overhead lighting. So, when you’re trying to wind down in the evening but you are exposed to lighting that is mimicking sunlight, it’s no wonder that it can be hard to get a good night’s sleep! One way to help with this a little is to have uplighting so that it isn’t quite as glaring over your head. I decided not to go down this route in the house as I didn’t want trip hazards for the baby. So, in our bedroom, Millie’s bedroom and the TV Room (yes, I know it is a bit counterproductive with the blue light from the big tv!), we have special spectrum bulbs from Block Blue Light (check out my Shop).
These work with 3 settings; daylight, sunset and evening. With each setting, they have different levels of blue light so that as the day goes on, we can adjust the lighting accordingly. I would have loved to have done this throughout the house but it gets costly!
Also, in Millie’s bedroom for her pendant light, and in our bedroom for the bedside light, we have red bulbs from Boncharge (check out my Shop) which are brilliant for setting the bedtime energy; perfect for reading or nappy changing!
Another modern feature that homes often have are sensor lights for the en-suite bathrooms. However, I didn’t want this as if I wake to use the bathroom in the middle of the night, I don’t want any blue light coming on! Instead, we have sensor lights from Boncharge (check out my Shop) which are rechargeable and can also move around.
Flicker – did you know that most modern-day LED bulbs flicker? It’s pretty impossible to see with the naked eye but if you film a light in slow motion (you can do this on your phone), then you can usually see it. That flicker can cause eye-strain, headaches, dizziness, tiredness and more. We’re exposed to this all the time! It’s been difficult to find a cost effective, low flicker light but I finally did! These ones are non-dimmable and have ‘eye comfort’. I’ve checked the stats and done the slow-mo test and they don’t seem to flicker which is great news! Please note non-dimmable CFL or LED light bulbs should never be connected to a dimmed circuit as this can pose a serious fire risk.
Dimmer switches – speaking of non-dimmable bulbs, we haven’t used dimmer switched anywhere! Annoyingly, dimmers all cause flicker so it’s a big no for us! It does mean that we have gorgeous rocker switches from Trendiswitch though!
Read more about my key points for a Healthy Home here.