Philips HF3318 User manual - Page 12

Introduction

Congratulations on your purchase and welcome to Philips! To fully benefit from the support that

Philips offers, register your product at www.philips.com/welcome.

The Philips EnergyLight is intended to make people feel more energetic and to provide mood relief

from the winter blues. If you suffer from severe mood swings or depression make sure to consult a

professional and do not use this device for self treatment.

The EnergyLight is suitable for both light exposures and normal lighting.

Light and health

The human body uses light cues, such as those provided by the sun, to time certain functions. Light

exposure can boost mood and energy. Light has direct alerting and energizing effects and can

improve our performance. Bright light therapy is also successfully used for mood relief, especially for

seasonal mood swings.

In countries with long winters, many people experience loss of energy and low spirits due to lack of

light. These symptoms are referred to as the winter blues. They typically start in the fall and may last

for several weeks. Exposure to bright light sources can help alleviate these symptoms and restore

the summer mood and summer energy level.

Many people are troubled by one or more symptoms of the winter blues. Many health experts

agree that the winter blues can be counteracted by exposure to bright light. ‘Bright light’ means

daylight with a certain intensity. In winter, the light intensity is often much lower than in summer: on

a gloomy winter day the light intensity varies between 2,500 and 10,000 lux, whereas this may be as

much as 100,000 lux on a bright summer day. Moreover, in winter most people spend a lot of time

indoors, either at home or at work, where artificial light often has an intensity of as little as 500 lux

and sometimes even less.Together with scientists and medical specialists in the field of winter blues

treatment, Philips has developed this special lighting appliance. This appliance allows you to safely get

the amount of light you need to help fight winter blues. Taking light exposures is generally accepted

as one of the safest and most effective ways of fighting the winter blues.

General description (Fig. 1)

A Energy lamp

B

Lamp housing with angle adjustment

C Base

D

On/off dial and light exposure time indicator

1

On/off symbol

2

Light symbol

3

Light intensity settings from low to high

E

Light exposure time symbol

Using the appliance

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It is advisable to start using the EnergyLight as soon as you feel the winter blues coming on or

when you feel like you need extra light.

-

Preferably take your light exposures between 6 o’clock in the morning and 8 o’clock in the

evening. (Fig. 2)

-

Visit www.lighttherapy.com for a free assessment and to customize a light exposure time

schedule just for you.

Duration and intensity

Duration of dailly exposure depends on the distance to the appliance and the intended use. The

longer the selected distance, the longer is the effective duration.

For helping winter blues the best results are expected for following combinations of duration and

intensity: 30 minutes at 10000 lux (6-8 in./15-20 cm), 60 minutes at 5000 lux (approx. 12in./cca 30

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Philips HF3318 User manual - Page 12

Introduction, General description Fig. 1, Using the appliance - 60

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