Lumie SAD Desk Lamp Review

Seasonal Affective Disorder, AKA SAD, is a medical condition suffered during times of shortened daylight hours. As the UK has a long, dreary winter it affects a higher percentage of the population than other countries. The NHS Choices website pins this number at roughly 2 million people, or 3.5% of the country. So how can it be treated?

There’s no conclusive line of treatment but studies have shown that therapy, antidepressants and light therapy can all help alleviate symptoms. Over the past few weeks we’ve been reviewing a lamp which claims to help sufferers of SAD; the Lumie Desk Lamp.

Key Specs

Research has shown that the LUMIE brand is effective in treating SAD. This model is made for use on a desk (as pictured here) and comes complete with a soft diffuser which can filter the light if you find it too bright.

This lamp is a certified medical device, classified as a class 2A product. It produces 10,000 lux at 22cm and 2,5000 at 50cm. When sitting at a desk you’ll more than likely be sat somewhere between these two rages which for us struck a happy medium.

Using the Lumie SAD Light Therapy Desk Lamp

The elongated head contains 96 white LEDs arranged to produce simulated sunlight. You can switch between modes to make the light brighter, or dimmer. We found the dimmer switch particularly useful (although a little temperamental) when reading where a softer light is required.

My office is particularly dark in the winter, due to me placing my desk in the opposite corner to the window (feng shui is not my strong point). This lamp really helped in that respect and I found the light to be far brighter and somewhat more natural than a regular bulb. You will need a fair amount of space to stand this lamp, the base is 20cm X 20cm.

The instruction manual suggests that you should use the lamp for 60 minutes at a time, although you can leave it on all day if required. As I was using it for my office it was left on all day and I found it worked well; my eyes where less strained, I could read my notes easier and the Lumie is a nice looking piece of kit too. Did it stave off the Winter blues? In all honesty it’s hard to say, I’m one of the lucky ones that doesn’t suffer too badly with SAD.

What others have said

My initial research, after admitting I’m not prone to SAD, was to turn to other users. The general consensus is this is a great product. Amazon shows it at a solid 4.2 stars and the reviews on the John Lewis site are mostly positive too. Design and functionality wise I’d agree it is a fantastic lamp, very bright and modern looking. Does it alleviate the symptoms of SAD,  i’m not in a position to say and we’re actually looking for a second opinion on this one, please get in touch if you are a SAD sufferer and have personally used this lamp.

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