SAD? Help for the Winter Blues

PORTLAND, Ore. (Ivanhoe Broadcast News) -- Gray skies, snow, rain ... It's enough to make anyone feel blue. When winter hits, as many as 40 million Americans get the blues. Shorter days and less sunlight can throw off the body clock, affecting mood and sleep. The official name for this winter depression is seasonal affective disorder or SAD.

When the winter months start, LeNeva Spires wishes she could stay in bed. "You sort of feel like you're half awake all day long," she says.

Spires tried sleeping longer and drinking more coffee, but her fatigue and depression just got worse. So she enrolled in a study using bright light therapy.

Al Lewy, Ph.D., M.D., a psychiatrist at Oregon Health & Science University in Portland, has studied winter depression for more than two decades. He says light therapy is the best treatment -- but it must be used as soon as you get up.

"The first week or two you might have to sit in front of the light fixture for two hours," he tells Ivanhoe. "Once you respond, you can cut down the duration to as short as 15 minutes." The light rays boost brain chemicals and make your body realize it's time to wake up.

The second-best option is the hormone melatonin. In a recent study, it improved depression symptoms by 30 percent.

Dr. Lewy says take low doses of melatonin in the afternoon to feel better in the morning. "If you take a tiny little dose of melatonin in the afternoon it tricks the body clock into thinking it's dark out, it's a chemical dark signal, and that advances or shifts earlier the time of dusk."

Light boxes are available commercially for $200 to $400. They use regular fluorescent bulbs that don't produce harmful ultraviolet rays, but some people with eye diseases shouldn't use them. Melatonin is still considered experimental, but if you are going to try it, start with a dose of no higher than 0.3 milligrams. Dr. Lewy says you should talk to your doctor before trying either of these options.

Spires says the light therapy and melatonin have made this winter much more pleasant.

This article was reported by Ivanhoe.com, which offers Medical Alerts by e-mail every day of the week. To subscribe, click on: http://www.ivanhoe.com/newsalert/.

If you would like more information, please contact:

Tamara Hargens
Oregon Health & Science University
News and Publications
3181 S.W. Sam Jackson Park Road
Portland, OR 97239-3098
(503) 494-8231
hargenst@ohsu.edu