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Welcome to Northern Light Technologies

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Our growth has been due to our uncompromising customer service, and exceptional product quality. All our bright light units are manufactured in North America. We have a wide range of products that will bring light into your life and help you overcome Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), and other problems arising from a lack of light. Thousands of clinicians across North America, Europe and Asia recommend our units. We have participated in the annual meeting of American Psychiatric Association, the American Psychological Association, and the SLTBR (Society for Light Treatment and Biological Rhythms) conferences for the past 20 years. We use the latest findings to ensure that our products meet the necessary criteria. If you experience lower energy levels, sleep disorders, reduced libido, fatigue or irritability as fall and winter approach, you may be suffering from the Winter Blues or the much more severe Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) or other circadian rhythm disorders. Let us help you with light therapy, the best medical treatment.

Before Buying

Before buying a light therapy unit, make sure of the following:

Light is not primarily blue (like all LEDs)

Light has a North American safety certification

Unit delivers 10,000 lux at a comfortable distance

Unit is equipped with a UV filter

Make sure manufacturer’s warranty really protects you

• Dawn simulator

• Sounds effects Sun Ray effects

• Alarm clock that wakes you naturally

• FM Radio with digital tuning

• helps keep your sleep/wake cycle on track

• Many more new Features.

Limited supply order now !

Lumie BodyClock Active 250 New Product

Insurance Coverage

Many major insurance companies now authorize or reimburse the purchase of light therapy equipment for Affective Disorder (SAD). To improve your chances of receiving reimbursement for your light therapy product, send the following documents to your insurance company:

• Invoice from Northern Light Technologies for the light therapy product

• Letter of medical necessity from your doctor

• Your own cover letter to the insurance company that includes all pertinent information regarding your policy, as well as the codes that cover light therapy. HCPCS Code: E0203 (Therapeutic light 10,000 lux), CPT Code: 96900 or 90899

More Info
brochure-eng

Brochure-CAN.PDF

Our Commitment

Made in Canada

7 Year Warranty

Since 1989

Covers you for the entire product

(Except for our long life tubes*)

No Nonsense / No Fine Print

This warranty does not apply to:

SunRise or Body Clock,Visor, and SUNBURST

*Under normal use, tubes will last at least 10 years

All our products are made in Canada or USA (With the exception of the SunRise Clock)

North American Quality Control

North American Safety Certification

Uncompromising customer service

Exceptional product value

We're passionate about bringing

quality light products to your home.

Products Store What is SAD storm_5

Winter Blues

Seasonal Affective Disorder (S.A.D.)

What is S.A.D.?Many people who live in the northern latitudes experience the Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) or winter blues to some extent. Some can muddle through the lethargy, fatigue and lack of motivation felt during autumn and winter. For those suffering from SAD, it is difficult to make it through the dark season. Over 20 years ago, mental health researchers showed that Winter Blues, or Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), also called Seasonal Depression, could be treated with light therapy. Today, light treatment is the modality of preference by physicians for the treatment of SAD. About 10% of the population of northern countries suffer from SAD. The main signs are fatigue, excess sleeping, withdrawal, and carbohydrate craving during the fall and winter months. Seasonal affective disorder or SAD is a form of depression that occurs mostly during the fall and winter months, when days shorten and sunlight decreases. One of the characteristics of this particular form of depression is its seasonal aspect. In many of the articles dealing with this subject, you will also find the expressions "winter depression" and "winter blues". Night-shift workers or people who work or live in a poorly or badly lit place can also suffer from SAD, even during summer. Usually, women tend to suffer from this type of depression more than men. Children and adolescents are particularly susceptible to the effects of SAD or Seasonal Affective Disorder. The depressive symptoms appear more often during the fall months and tend to disappear come late winter or early spring.The seasonal onset of this depression seems to occur in the late Summer or Fall, especially in northern latitudes, when the days grow shorter. It subsides in the Spring when the weather improves and the days grow longer. This depression is often accompanied by general sluggishness, irritability, carbohydrate craving and reduced libido. It is important, however, to consider that the seasonality may be caused by other factors, notably psychological (eg. the return to school in the Fall and the anticipation of Summer vacation in the Spring). For this reason, it is always a good idea to consult with a health professional. If you do not know of any, please e-mail or call us for our free referral to experienced clinicians in your area.The magnitude of seasonal difficulties may vary from one person to another. For SAD sufferers, it is a relief to know that depression is no longer linked to a weakness of character, but to an alteration of our brain chemistry.Many people treated by Dr Norman Rosenthal at the NIMH (National Institute Mental Health) in Maryland, USA have told how, prior to being diagnosed with SAD, they felt lazy, worthless, and immature. Just knowing that the disease has a name, a description and that there is an affordable and effective non-invasive treatment, is a relief in itself.

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Symptoms

Seasonal Affective Disorder (S.A.D.)

> Feeling tired, depressed or sad> Increased appetite> Craving for carbohydrates and starchy foods> Weight gain> Sleeping more than usual> Social withdrawal> Lack of interest in usual activities> Inability to concentrate, to focus> Inability to meet deadlines> Loss of sexual desire> Body aches and pains

Solution

Side Effects

"Northern" Light Therapy

Bright Light Therapy

The most common side effects from bright light therapy are eye and/or skin irritation and headaches. They are most prevalent in people with light colored eyes, blonde or red hair and sensitive skin. These side effects can usually be resolved by gradual introduction of light therapy.If you are suffering from any of these side effects, you should first stop using the light until eye or skin irritation clears up. Then, start using the light five minutes a day, increasing gradually to full use over a period of about two weeks. Please note that some medications, such as lithium, certain antibiotics, acne creams, chemotherapy drugs, can make you very sensitive to light.

Working with thousands of clinicians in North America and in Europe, Northern Light Technologies has a full range of suitable products to put Light in your Life for both daily and seasonal applications.

Light therapy is a simple, medically recognized, efficient treatment to fight Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), the milder winter blues and some sleep disorders. Research on SAD has shown that it is better to start treatment early in autumn, before the usual onset of symptoms.

Consult with your physician

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If you feel that you may be suffering from depression, you must consult a qualified health professional (SAD sufferers are not an exception). Although a self-diagnosis seems relatively easy to make, other conditions can be similar to SAD. These problems must be considered and eliminated before a SAD diagnosis is made
Diet-Exercise

Nutrition

Exercise

Sleep Routines

Motivating Activities

For SAD sufferers, the nutrition and sleep routines vary a great deal between summer and winter. In winter, those afflicted have a tendency to eat too much, especially carbohydrates and starchy foods, and gain weight. Although they may lose weight in summer, these people have a tendency to accumulate additional excess pounds each year. As years go by, it can result in obesity. SAD sufferers also need to sleep more than usual : even after a 10 to 12 hour night of sleep, they sometimes still feel tired and feel like they are dragging themselves along. The resulting inactivity also causes weight gain.
There is more and more evidence that regular aerobic exercise benefits depressed people in general. For those who suffer from SAD, if these activities imply more lighting, either outdoors or in front of a lamp, the antidepressant effect may be even greater. If people chose an activity only on the basis of its aerobic properties or its therapeutic value, there is little chance that they will stick to it for a long time. It is important to choose a motivating activity, which brings pleasure and satisfaction. To persevere and motivate oneself further it is useful to find someone who can share in this activity with you.

Diet

Biology

Beneficial Effects

Dieting and exercising must be considered as important factors for SAD sufferers, not only because they can have a positive effect on their mood, but also because they have beneficial effects on SAD itself. Research has shown that gaining or losing weight in a cyclic way can be particularly bad for an individual’s health. In spite of all its benefits, light therapy may disappoint those who hope to automatically lose weight once they feel better. For this reason, dieting and exercising must be part of a program for SAD sufferers.Although light therapy diminishes the appetite and the weight gain, often it is only partially effective, and sometimes, exercising is not enough. The best solution is to watch what you eat. For more detailed information on how best to use light therapy Click Here.In his book "Winter Blues", Dr Norman Rosenthal mentions that the following three dietary approaches offer the best perspectives for SAD sufferers: > High-carbohydrate, reduced-calorie diets > The Carbohydrate Addict’s Diet > The Paleolithic Diet: Balancing carbohydrates with protein A dietician may be of great help to personalize a diet. It is also possible to combine different elements of these approaches in order to create a dietary program that works for a particular individual.

Medical Model

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There is a medical model to explain how the seasonal changes can cause SAD. According to this "model", the changes of the cerebral functions are considered in the same way as any other organs deficiencies -the pancreas in diabetes for example. The diabetic's pancreas produces too little insulin. The SAD sufferer's pineal gland produces too much melatonin. Additionally not enough serotonin is produced. The diabetic is helped with insulin; the person with SAD is helped through light therapy. An excellent account of the way in which melatonin and serotonin act can be found in a paper by the UK National Institute for Medical Research entitled "Seasonal Depression and Light Therapy".

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Blue Light

2.Artificial Lighting and the Blue Light Hazard.pdf

4.Blue Light.pdf

3.Blue Light and Macular Degeneration.pdf

Exercise

What do the EXPERTS say?

All HANDHELD UNITS operate on Blue Light with intensity in the 500 lux range

"The bottom-line answer is, at this time stay with conventional white-light fixtures. We have decades of experience indicating that these are effective and safe. As of the writing of this book, there is not one published study on the effectiveness of blue light for treating SAD. Nor is there the long track record of safety. On the contrary, there is long-standing concern about potential toxicity of blue light to the eyes." Norman Rosenthal, MD, in WINTER BLUES (2005) "elevated chronic exposure to light has been identified as a risk factor for development of ARMD (Age Related Macular Degeneration)avoiding exposures to bright short-wavelength [blue] light is the simplest preventative measure against light damage". Rozanowska M. & Sarna T./ Photochem Photobiol 2005 Nov 1"blue light alone can damage the powerhouses of the retina cells, called mitochondria, and in particular the DNA of these energy producing cells."Journal of Biological Chemistry 2005 June"Visible light of short wavelength (blue light) may cause a photochemical injury to the retina, called photoretinitis or blue-light hazard." Okuno T, Saito H, Ojima Evaluation of blue-light hazards from various light sources. J. Dev Ophthalmol. 2002;35:104-12."the most important damage from blue light involves pigments that accumulate only in retinal pigment epithelium (RPE)] cells" which "very efficiently absorb wavelengths in the blue regionthis pigment, we now know, is able to initiate phototoxic reactions, that is it can absorb light and initiate reactions in the cell that are damaging". Janet Sparrow of Columbia University as reported by Carol Lindsay in ScienCentral News Aug 11, 2005.". . . continuous exposure to blue light is potentially dangerous to vision." Koide R, Ueda TN, Dawson WW, Hope GM, Ellis A, Somuelson D, Ueda T, Iwabuchi S, Fukuda S, Matsuishi M, Yasuhara H, Ozawa T, Armstrong D. Nippon. Retinal hazard from blue light emitting diode. Ganka Gakkai Zasshi. 2001 Oct;105(10):687-95. ". . . high levels of exposure to blue or visible light may cause ocular damage, especially later in life, and may be related to the development of age-related macular degeneration." Taylor HR, West S, Munoz B, Rosenthal FS, Bressler SB, and Bressler NM. Archives of Ophthalmology 1992; 110:99-104. "I think chronic blue light is probably damaging." Joshua Dunaief, MD, in Bethke W. Review of Ophthalmology Oct 15 2003; 10(10)."The high-energy segment of the visible region (400-500 nm) is enormously more hazardous than the low energy portion (from 500-700 nm)." Young RW Survey of Ophthalmology 1988; 32(4): 252-269. "Visible light of short wavelength (blue light) may cause a photochemical injury to the retina, called photoretinitis or blue-light hazard." Okuno T, Saito H, Ojima J. Dev Ophthalmol. 2002;35:104-12."[The] Action spectrum for blue-light induced [retinal] damage shows a maximum at 400 nm and 450 nm." Bartlett H, Eperjesi F Nutrition Journal 2003, 2:12. "The effectiveness of light in inducing photo damage to the retina increases with decreasing wavelength from 500 to 400 nm." Andley UP, L.T. Chylack Jr LTPhotodermatology Photoimmunology and Photomedicine 1990; 7:98-105."The photoreceptors in the retina . . . are susceptible to damage by light, particularly blue light. The damage can lead to cell death and diseases." Shaban H, Richter C. Biol Chem 2002 Mar-Apr;383(3-4):537-45.

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Documents-Resources

Resources

SADelite Instructions.pdf

TRAVelite Instruction.pdf

FLAMINGO Instruction.pdf

LUXOR Instruction.pdf

BOXelite Instructions.pdf

FBL-Visor.pdf

SRC.pdf

F.A.Q.

Need to know more?

>> Dr Norman E. Rosenthal's website

>> Daniel F. Kripke, M.D.University of California, San Diego.

>> The Society for Light Treatment and Biological Rhythms

>> Association canadienne pour la santé mentale

Instructions

References

Ballast Replacement.pdf

US Brochure-2009-2010.pdf

Brochure-CAN.PDF

4.Blue Light.pdf

3.Blue Light and Macular Degeneration.pdf

2.Artificial Lighting and the Blue Light Hazard.pdf

Light Therapy in SAD & Circadian Phase.pdf

Dawn Simulation & SAD.pdf

5.Dr.N.E.Rosenthal.pdf

Pediatric SAD.pdf

Ottawa SUN.pdf

French Brochure 2009-2010.pdf

Brochure

Ballast

Documents

Lates News

Latest News

Choose Safe Lights for SAD Therapy

Dell Pharmacy protects your health by making product safety a top priority.

Some light therapy boxes used for treating seasonal affective disorders emit white light, which peaks in the blue light spectrum. Blue light can be hazardous to eye health--it has been recently linked to macular degeneration, which is a serious eye disease. To ensure patient safety, Dell Pharmacy only carries lights for SAD that do not peak in the blue light spectrum.

Dell Pharmacy carries a variety of Canadian-made 10,000-lux light boxes and portable lights for treating seasonal affective disorder. Below we feature three of our most popular light therapy products. Visit any Dell Pharmacy to see our complete line of lights

To View the Full Article please visit their website:

http://www.dellpharmacy.com/our-pharmacy-services/default.aspx?id=1174

Weather often affects peoples moods. Sunlight breaking through clouds can lift our spirits, while a dull, rainy day may make us feel a little gloomy. While noticeable, these shifts in mood generally do not affect our ability to cope with daily life. Some people, however, are vulnerable to a type of depression that follows a seasonal pattern. For them, the shortening days of late autumn are the beginning of a type of clinical depression that can last until spring. This condition is called Seasonal Affective Disorder," or SAD.

A mild form of SAD, often referred to as the winter blues," causes discomfort, but is not incapacitating. However, the term winter blues can be misleading; some people have a rarer form of SAD which is summer depression. This condition usually begins in late spring or early summer.

To View the Full Article please visit their website:

http://www.cmha.ca/bins/content_page.asp?cid=3-86-93&lang=1

Light therapy— has been proven effective for people with seasonal affective disorder. It involves sitting near a special kind of light for about half an hour a day. The intense, artificial light causes a chemical change in the brain that improves mood and helps relieve SAD symptoms. Light therapy should not be done without first consulting your doctor because there are side-effects to this treatment. Sixty to 80 per cent of people with SAD find substantial relief from using light therapy.

Adults: are at higher risk of SAD than children and teenagers. After the age of 50, the risk of SAD starts to decline. Researchers arent yet sure why.

Women: are up to 8 times as likely as men to report having SAD.

HeretoHelp is a project of the BC Partners for Mental Health and Addictions Information.

To View the Full Article please visit their website:

http://heretohelp.bc.ca/publications/factsheets/sad#A

The Causes of SAD: Body Clocks and Chemicals

Though it might seem intuitive that the cause of SAD might simply be the cold temperatures and relative restriction in the types of activities that one can do outside in Northern climates, its actually more likely that SAD has to do with the lack of light in winter months.(3) When days get shorter, we are exposed to much less natural light, which can affect levels of the neurotransmitters (brain chemicals) involved in mood and depression.

We all have a biological clock, made up of cells in an area of the brain called the suprachiasmatic nucleus, which keeps us more or less on a 24-hour cycle. However, our biological clocks seem to need sunlight to stay set on a regular cycle. When people are kept in the dark, their natural cycles tend to extend: over time, the sleep-wake cycle becomes closer to 25-hours if it does not have a cue to reset it each morning.

To View the Full Article please visit their website:

http://www.thedoctorwillseeyounow.com/content/depression/art3473.html?getPage=2#topic2

VIDEO CLIPS

Lets watch some clips about Winter Depression

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Northern Light Technologies

8971 Henri-Bourassa Blvd. W.

Montreal (St. Laurent), QC H4S 1P7

Tel: 514-335-1763 | 1-800-263-0066

Fax: 514-335-7764

email: info_NorthernLightTechnologies.com

www. NorthernLightTechnologies.ca

We're passionate about bringing quality light products to your home

Contact Us

Your Satisfaction is our priority

Take out the star next to heading Symptoms

Take out Keep in mind and the bubble, and replace by Consult your physician (bigger and bolder than it is now)

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email: info_NorthernLightTechnologies.com

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