As humans spend more and more time indoors, we lose access to the sun's natural benefits. Consequently, recognition of seasonal affective disorder has increased. While the actual incidence of the condition is low (about 5%, or approximately 10 million Americans), it has led to increased awareness of the sun's impact on serotonin production in the brain and its resulting impact on the body. human.
As a result, phototherapy lamps have become increasingly popular. I bought one a while ago. It's big, unwieldy, and emits a bright light like a tanning lamp. These products are based on the visible light spectrum, in an attempt to mimic the impact of the sun for those of us who spend more waking hours in front of a computer than we care to mention.
More recently, the use of the “near-infrared” (NIR) segment of the light spectrum has been gaining popularity as a potential alternative to visible light. As its name indicates, the segment is located between infrared light and visible light, between 600 and 1,000 nanometers. According to the National Institute of Health, “low-level light therapy in the far-red (FR) to near-infrared (NIR) spectrum range, collectively called photobiomodulation (PBM), has gained global attention in recent years as an novel tool for experimental therapeutic applications in a variety of medical conditions.”
This weekend at MWC, a Dutch company (appropriately, given the lack of sunlight present during Dutch winters) called Seaborough introduced small devices designed to replace large SAD lamps. One sits next to the computer and the other clips above are displayed, looking a lot like an external webcam. Both plug into the USB port for power.
Unfortunately, the devices are a proof of concept. The company told me it is currently seeking partnerships to license the technology. I took the main image with an iPhone, which is capable of NIR capture, which is why you see that reddish-purple glow. You can also see the shine coming from the surrounding bezels. Ideally, Seaborough would like to eventually build it into the laptops themselves, although third-party accessories seem much more likely. Heck, why not integrate it into a real webcam?
As someone who has battled quite a bit of depression in recent years, I would certainly be willing to check it out. This is really difficult to review anecdotally, of course, since a possible placebo effect needs to be taken into account. I will say, however, that there has been some research done on this. Take this from a paper published a decade ago: “The results showed that treatment with PBM alone at 6.5 J cm-2 has consistent positive benefits on well-being and health, specifically improving mood, reducing drowsiness, reducing IFN-γ and resting heart rate.”
The investigation indicates that the impact was only experienced in the winter months. It also had no significant impact on the participants' circadian rhythm. That said, it's probably still safe to suggest that the jury is still out on many of these things.