Adapted from BMJ 8-15 March 2025
We know that bright light therapy is effective for seasonal depression. A systematic review has also found that it works for non seasonal depression too.
In eleven trials, remission and response rates almost doubled in groups receiving bright light therapy.
Speed of response was also accelerated.
My comment: we all need more sunshine in our lives!
Cold water immersion therapy is said to improve various health measures by some practitioners. A systematic review found that reliable evidence of benefit was thin on the ground.
Most trials were vulnerable to bias and few results were replicated consistently.
One change that was consistent however, was that sickness absence fell by a quarter in participants who took cold showers.
My comment: I tried this years ago and I didn’t get any benefit. I have a friend who swims in the sea every week in Ayrshire. She enjoys it, but it doesn’t seem to have changed her health one way or another. I know a very fit farmer who has been having cold baths and showers daily for over 20 years.
Diabetes Diet 