How LED lighting can improve productivity and mental health at work
Light is all around us. It helps us navigate the world around us and concentrate on what we’re doing. Poor quality artificial light in the workplace can impact our physical and mental health. Studies have shown that LED lighting can improve wellbeing at work.
The negative impacts of poor lighting at work
The quality of lighting is often overlooked in the workplace but poor light sources can have a range of ill-health effects. We spend much of our working day in artificial light and a lack of natural sunlight has an adverse effect on our bodies and minds.
Physically, employees may suffer eye strain, headaches and fatigue. From a mental health perspective, people working in a poorly lit environment can experience stress, low mood and anxiety plus poor concentration levels, energy and alertness. Seasonal affective disorder (SAD) is a well-known condition that particularly affects people during the darkest days of the year.
How LED lighting can improve employee wellbeing
LEDs more closely resembled natural light than traditional lighting sources. They do this because they have a higher Colouring Rendering Index (CRI). Industry-standard LEDs have a CRI of 80-plus though some are available with a CRI as high as 95. This is as close to natural sunlight as it’s possible to get.
Spending the day working under light that mimics natural daylight has been shown to boost serotonin, the chemical in the brain that contributes to feelings of wellbeing. This could benefit those who experience symptoms of SAD too.
A number of studies have also found that employees who work in LED-lit environments report more motivation, better concentration and energy, improved focus and productivity and elevated mood.
The benefits of LED lighting could particularly apply to shift workers who spend much of the sunlit hours of the day sleeping and then working under artificial light at night. Better emulating natural light in the workplace of staff who work shifts alleviates the groggy symptoms associated with artificial light.
Make the switch to LED lighting in your workplace
Brooktech design and install upgrades from traditional lighting to LED light systems. See how your organisation could benefit from LED lighting by getting in touch with our experts today.
