The Power of Colors – Part 7
I want to follow Leslie Kane’s article a little more and talk about color and lights. She has some very interesting information.
Color and Light
Colored lights or colored filters surrounding a light also affect your health and mood. Oddly, light of a particular color may promote the opposite effect from paint of the same color. For an example, while pink walls can be soothing, pink light is irritating. John Ott, former director of the Environmental Health and Light Research Institute, Sarasota, Florida, reports that when staff members at a Florida radio station tried to perk up the place by replacing white florescent bulbs with deep pink tubes, announcers began performing poorly on the air. Everyone became irritable and two people resigned.
Finally, one employee pinpointed the problem: “If those pink bulbs aren’t removed, I’ll go out of my mind.” That day, the new tubes were discarded and the old ones were returned. Within a week, tempers calmed, congeniality improved, the announcers regained their competence and both resignations were withdrawn.
A new double-blind study done at the University of California School of Nursing illustrates the healing effects of blue lights. When rheumatoid-arthritis patients were in a room in which a blue colored filter had been positioned over a ceiling light, their pain lessened and in some cases disappeared entirely. Half an hour under the lights was usually enough to ease pain.
In another study, Francis Owens, MD, of Pinehurst, North Carolina, treated burn patients by exposing them to light shining through green filters. After half an hour, the patients—some of whom had second and third degree burns—reported that their pain had eased dramatically. The burns also healed more quickly than expected.
Ott also reports a striking example of interaction involving color light, psychology and physiology. Seeking an explanation for the high absentee rate in their plant, factory owners found that the blue lighting in work areas made women employees look sick. Looking sick made them believe they were sick, so they stayed home more often. The plant owners got rid of the blue lights, and absenteeism dropped.
I thought this was interesting and have played around with lights. In another study, they found the traditional yellow fluorescent tube lights drain your energy. They used them for years in stores and offices. Some people used them within their homes because they were supposed to use less energy. We are going to continue with the power of colors.
No related posts.
Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.
Tagged with: Color • colors • environmental • health
