The June Lightovation show was an ideal time for ALA members and Lightovation attendees to learn more about the ALA Better Light, Better Sleep program – developed by ALA with the support of The Light and Health Research Center at the Ichan School of Medicine at Mount Sinai – and how it presents a unique value proposition for showrooms to present to customers. 

Jennifer Brons of The Light and Health Research Center outlined what circadian-effective lighting is and the health benefits it can provide to people of all ages, from teenagers to the elderly.  

The ALA Better Light, Better Sleep program is offered exclusively to ALA member showrooms. According to Blake Matthew of PureEdge Lighting, chair of the ALA Better Light, Better Sleep Committee, the first group of Better Light, Better Sleep products is expected to be available for sale in approximately three to six months.

“The ALA Better Light, Better Sleep program is a good opportunity for showrooms to bring additional value to their customers,” Matthew explained. “What’s great about the program is its simplicity. You don’t have to be a specialist, although there will be an education component.  I think [demonstrating and selling] the application in a showroom environment will be fairly easy for showrooms to execute.”

Among the highlights of the presentation were:

• Why the residential market is ideal for using circadian-effective lighting products.  The times of day when circadian rhythms need to be calibrated most are in the morning and evening hours, when most people are at home.

“We think residential lighting is a really important place to focus on in terms of light and sleep health. Light in both the morning and the evening strongly affects the timing of our internal body clocks. What’s great about lighting in the home – as opposed to in an office – is that it overlaps very well with the times of day that we really need to be careful about our light exposure,” Brons explained. “We want to have a boost of light in our mornings when we start our day, and we want to step back on our light exposure in the evening — so the home is a great place for us to take control of our light exposure for those key times of day that are important for our bodies.”

• Why is having good circadian rhythm a big deal?

“People who are not exposed to a regular light-dark cycle (and a rest-activity cycle) tend to suffer from a whole host of illnesses such as cardiovascular diseases (including high blood pressure) gastrointestinal disorders, and changes in how the metabolism is working (such as glucose and lipid tolerance),” Brons stated. In addition, Bron’s colleagues are studying ways that light impacts stress and depression.  She added that the World Health Organization has likened night shift work to a human carcinogen due to circadian disruption. For these reasons, maintaining a consistent circadian rhythm is vital to good health. 

• What’s so special about the ALA Better Light, Better Sleep products?

Products in the ALA Better Light, Better Sleep program are specifically designed to provide enough light at the eye to have circadian benefit, have three levels of light that vary according to the time of day, and that limit glare. 

“Some of the requirements for participating manufacturers in this program are to develop products based on which rooms and spaces consumers will be using the lights in,” Brons said.  “Manufacturers will ensure there is enough light at the customer’s eye at the typical distances and angles at which the customer is going to be viewing the light source,” she said.

“Products participating in this program are going to be measured for each use case. The products will deliver at least 35 footcandles at the eye in morning mode, and in evening mode, the products will be 5 footcandles, which is a subdued light level where you probably wouldn’t be able to distinguish blue socks from black socks, for example,” Brons remarked.

• How do lighting showrooms sell this technology to consumers?

“For lighting showrooms, it’s going to be all about knowing your customer and where they spend their time,” Brons stated. “By asking how they are spending their time at various times of day, the showroom salesperson can custom-tailor solutions, plus get them to think about how to use light in their homes over the course of the day.”

In addition to dozens of lighting showroom personnel, the Lightovation seminar audience included interior designers who indicated they are interested in collaborating with lighting showrooms that offer these types of circadian lighting products and education because they feel that light’s impact on health is a topic their clients would be interested in. 

More details on the ALA Better Light, Better Sleep program will be announced during the annual ALA Conference, which will be held September 22-24 at The Breakers in Palm Beach, Fla. Click here to register.