Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) is a condition that causes people to feel depressed from lack of sunlight. During the long winter months, for example, moods may turn blue for reasons related to brain chemistry, especially a lack of serotonin. Doctors have found several ways to treat SAD. One is negative ionization therapy, that is, a device emits negatively-charged oxygen particles. Another is a “dawn machine” that imitates the rising of the sun and provides equivalent light while people sleep. A third approach is bright light therapy, in which a patient sits under a special lamp for at least 30 minutes per day.
(Today in the Word, June 2007)
