Wellness lighting

Circadian rhythms are dictated by the body’s internal clock. These 24-hour cycles help your body regulate its processes — one of the most common ones being the sleep and wake-up cycle. Circadian rhythms can be affected by many factors, one of the most influential being the light your body is exposed to throughout the day.

Blue light suppresses melatonin, the hormone your body produces when it’s dark to help make you sleepy. When your body is exposed to blue light, your melatonin production slows, and you become less sleepy. If this happens at an inopportune time — think scrolling on your phone before bedtime! — it can throw off your natural circadian rhythm.¹

1. Philips Circle of Light whitepaper, 2014, https://www.lighting.philips.com/b-dam/b2b-li/en_AA/Experience/Topics/Education/Lighting_Academy/how-to-beat/Daily-sleep-wake-cycles-whitepaper-FINAL.pdf

Circadian lighting changes throughout the day to correlate with your body’s circadian rhythm. Bright, blue-toned light in the morning helps suppress melatonin, the hormone that makes you sleepy. Warm, red-toned light closer to bedtime can help encourage melatonin production.

Light — not just LED light — plays a large part in your circadian rhythm. Because of this, the lights in your home can directly affect your health and wellbeing. For example, blue light suppresses melatonin, the sleep hormone, so being exposed to blue light at nighttime can prevent you from getting sleepy.