What kind of indoor artificial light should you use?

On average, older people need about three times as much light as younger people. People with glaucoma often require much higher light levels, while there are conditions such as central cataract where lower light may be better. The quality and quantity of the light needed for comfortable, useful vision becomes particularly important when vision is impaired.

Glare results when light (natural or artificial) shines directly into your eyes or reflects off a shiny surface. When arranging a room to be used for reading or working, do not face the windows. Seat yourself so that windows are behind you or to your side. If that is not possible, use blinds or shades to control the light during daylight hours. Light from lamps or fixtures should be positioned directly onto the task (book, newspaper, playing cards, hobby/craft, etc.). Gooseneck, adjustable arm, and clip-on lamps offer good flexibility. In dimly lit restaurants, use a pocket flashlight. When reading or working outside, use a visor to shut out sky light glare.

Incandescent light is the thermal radiation emitted by a hot object such as the filament of a light bulb or the surface of the sun. Actually daylight is a form of incandescent light. In a common incandescent light bulb, an electric current flows through a tungsten wire, which gets heated and emits thermal radiation. Like all incandescent bulbs, a halogen lamp creates its light as visible thermal radiation from an extremely hot tungsten wire.

The Chromalux Bulb is made of special composition glass that is not colored or coated, but instead contains Neodymium, a rare earth element. This element is able to absorb yellow - as a result, the light appears whiter (in contrast to yellowish hue of the common bulbs). Contrary to claims, these bulbs do not even come close to being full spectrum, or duplicating sunlight. The only difference between these bulbs and normal bulbs is in the amount of yellow light emission.

Fluorescent tubes use a non-thermal radiation process to produce light. This is the only type of lighting that can come close to being 'Full Spectrum'. A type of fluorescent bulb is now available as a direct, screw-in replacement for some incandescent bulbs. They consume from one-sixth to one-tenth as much electricity, radiate very little heat, and, although expensive, last about ten times as long as the conventional incandescent bulbs. In addition, these modern tri-phosphor compact fluorescent bulbs provide light very close to the quality of incandescent. They provide excellent color rendition--food looks natural, colors look normal and offer a “comfortable” atmosphere for most people. There are considerable differences in the light spectrum emitted by the sun and artificial light sources.