Energy Saving Bulbs and Migraines

[Andreadoria]

I am trying to find the link from the show TODAY IN NEW YORK, from this morning. They are saying the new energy saving bulbs might be emitting a low frequency that effects migraine sufferers.

I will try to find the link. I just thought of Rosenfaries when I saw it this morning.

Off to find the link

[SHpepperKat]

I am trying to find the link from the show TODAY IN NEW YORK, from this morning. They are saying the new energy saving bulbs might be emitting a low frequency that effects migraine sufferers.

I will try to find the link. I just thought of Rosenfaries when I saw it this morning.

Off to find the link


I don't know about the link for this but I do know that those damn compact florescent bulbs, hell any flourescent lights triger migrance sfor me. Maybe now people will believe me when I say that the lights are giving me a migrane. I can't spend much time at my dad's apartment building because of the lights. and as for shopping, I have two or three pairs of sun glasses that I wear in the stores. Nope I'm not trying to look cool or odd, just keeping my wits about me.

[rosefaeries]

I hate fluorescent lights!!!!! I always used to get horribly ill from them during the Holiday Market at the fairgrounds. (Headaches and throwing up.)Those lights flicker in cycles. I can see where the compact ones could do the same thing. I have had migraines triggered by them before. (Problem is, no one can figure out what triggered it this time.)

I have been living in hats. At this rate, no one is going to recognize me without a hat on. *rotfl*

And yes the link will be greatly appreciated. (Thank you.)

[*Gremco]

Sweet! I should get brighter ones to keep my mother in law away!

In all seriousness, I can't say I'm too surprised. I've noticed the flickering occasionally. Lights don't cause headaches for me, but the high pitched whine that electronics make drives me crazy. It keeps me from being on the computer for too long though!

[MaidenFaeSnow]

I've been on migraine theraphy for a few years now. One of the things I had to do...not turn on the overhead lights in my office! I have desk lamps instead. That makes a big difference, I will get a headache almost immediately under overhead lighting and have to be carefull. It doesn't seem to be too bad in stores, most likely because everything is so well-lit and the lights are higher up but if I am in there for an extended period of time it will affect me. Another thing, flashing lights; school buses, faulty lights that flicker, police car lights on tv, etc.

The power of lights has been too long underestimated in connection with headaches/migranes.

[wrenchwench]

I've been on migraine theraphy for a few years now. One of the things I had to do...not turn on the overhead lights in my office! I have desk lamps instead. That makes a big difference, I will get a headache almost immediately under overhead lighting and have to be carefull. It doesn't seem to be too bad in stores, most likely because everything is so well-lit and the lights are higher up but if I am in there for an extended period of time it will affect me. Another thing, flashing lights; school buses, faulty lights that flicker, police car lights on tv, etc.

The power of lights has been too long underestimated in connection with headaches/migranes.

My boss knows it's a bad day when the office lights are off, luckily we have big ole windows.
One of the things they tested with me when I was first diagnosed with Migraines was to hook me up to a monitor, um the e-whichever monitors branwaves-g, and then they ran a stobe light in my face. Talk about reactions!
I am super light sensitive, I have my sunglasses approved in the workplace as my safety glasses. Who everdecided that Aircraft should be mostly white was a jerk, working on the ramp can do me in without my sunglasses.:toocool:

Gremco- If computers are a problem never work around Avionics setups. The main reason I didn't go into the field of avionics is the electronic whine kills me. Not only am I in trouble due to migraines, but I have a wider than normal hearing range and can hear sounds most people don't.

[merestelle]

I have always had trouble with fluorescent lights.

Any bright or flashing light can trigger migraines for me. I could go months without one, then in a moment I can go from being fine to not being able to see. My supervisor doesn't get it and generally thinks I'm just trying to get
out of work.

[Ysobelle]

It baffles me that people could pooh-pooh the idea of lights affecting the brain, as it's been pretty well-known for years that flashing or flickering lights can cause epileptic seizures.

[Andreadoria]

Most people I know that suffer from migraines. Light is a big factor.

I found working directly under fluorescent lights and using a LCD screen for the computer would kill my eyes and cause e horrid headaches bordering on migraines...the management could care less.

Unfortunately the news cast was now saying and I cannot find the clip...that the low frequency hum of the compact bulbs are now adding fuel to migraine sufferers.

[MaidenFaeSnow]

Most people I know that suffer from migraines. Light is a big factor.

I found working directly under fluorescent lights and using a LCD screen for the computer would kill my eyes and cause e horrid headaches bordering on migraines...the management could care less.

Unfortunately the news cast was now saying and I cannot find the clip...that the low frequency hum of the compact bulbs are now adding fuel to migraine sufferers.


I have to dim my monitors to work (I run a Computer Training Center too :unamused:) Luckily my office has 3 big windows so I get a lot of natural light though I still keep the blinds mostly tilted upwards on sunny days so it isn't too bright. Faire days are hard since I don't wear sunglasses, I try not to stand in the sun a lot but rather be in shady areas, that's not too bad.

[Lady Anisette]

It baffles me that people could pooh-pooh the idea of lights affecting the brain, as it's been pretty well-known for years that flashing or flickering lights can cause epileptic seizures.

I have always found that my dogs' veterinarian was far ahead of the curve when it came to medical cause and effects than my own MD's. My Ani had horrible seizures one afternoon in the car. After the vet stabilized her, he stated that although she had an underlying condition the trigger was the bright sunshine gleaming off of the white snow. He recommended that I keep her away from bright lights to prevent this from happening too frequently. I bought her doggles (doggy sunglasses) and she never had a grand mal seizure again.

On the other hand, my former boss suffered horribly from migraines. Her office was brightly lit and when her secretary suggested she keep the lights down, she said that her specialist stated that there was no connection between the bright flourescents and her problem. He even suggested that she get out and get "more sun." :unamused:

[wrenchwench]

On the other hand, my former boss suffered horribly from migraines. Her office was brightly lit and when her secretary suggested she keep the lights down, she said that her specialist stated that there was no connection between the bright flourescents and her problem. He even suggested that she get out and get "more sun." :unamused:

I have a belief that if your doctor has not had or loved someone who had Migrianes they have no empathy or reason to try to truely understand the condition.
I have a student who also suffers from migrianes that was told by his specialist that caffine was not relevant in the treatment of migrianes. all I could think was WTF?

MFS,
I too have a hard time during faire days. My friends know I go from patch of shade to patch of shade, and not just because of all the pale skin that might burn! (tho it does lead to jokes about what types of creatures avoid sunlight.)

[Hoyden]

Huh! This has set me thinking big time.

I wonder if that's why shopping does a number on me. Being outside in the light doesn't bother me. In the stores, I can only handle so much. I haven't grocery shopped or done major shopping for years because of it. My husband does it all.

I have sjoegren's syndrome that sometimes leaves me aching all over, feels like you have the full body ache from the flu. I can eat lots of aleve and cope with it most days.

But add in shopping and forget about it. I also end up with a head ache and so light headed that I end up in bed when I get home, IF I make it home. There have been times where I called Mark to come get me because I didn't trust myself to drive home.

It has to be the sound, because I DO have "bat ears" I can hear things that everyone around me can't hear. Ranges, pitches, etc. The doctor I see for the sjoegren's has my hearing and eyes checked annually because sjoegren's can affect both. He's joked that it's no wonder my eye prescription is so strong, my hearing is so good that I'm switching over to echo location. *rotfl*

It's not the computer whine that I hate, it's that white noise buzz with the shrieking edge that seems to throb that has me twitching. I've never connected it with overhead lights, but now that I think about it, it makes sense.



My 16 year old daughter, Autumn, often gets nauseated when we've been in a store too long. She ALSO has "bat hearing". Her hearing is so acute, she can tune just about any musical instrument by ear. Even ones she does not play. Her music and chorus teachers, as well as several well known music professors have commented that she has the best "ear" they have ever worked with. She hears ranges and pitches that most people can not hear and does a better job tuning the band than the electric tuner that teachers rely on.


I definitely need to research this further.

[Jamianne]

Hmmmm....Dave's been getting pretty bad headaches for a while now. He got glasses and it helped a lot. But he still gets them - mostly when he's been at his desk all day. We were thinking they were from strees, but he works on the computer a lot and had obnoxious flourecent lights in his office. Definitely worth looking into further.

[wrenchwench]

As far as hearing goes...yeah I would research it. I used to be able to hear some store's security systems and most lights, and things that look unreal in type so I'll skip them, lol
I have been working in the aviation field for almost 20 years, most of my co-workers have severe hearing loss, what this means for me is I have been brought closer to the normal range. I noticed the difference and went to have my hearing checked and was tested at better than normal still. The doctor was stunned, and told me to stop complaining abut hearing loss.

The other thing I have been told about migraine sufferers is that too much visual stimuli will overwhelm them. Probably why I have so much trouble driving in busy city traffic. And now that you mention it I cannot shop in the chain stores during the busy times...I end up developing a migraine. I never put the clues together before! :roll:

[Annabella St. Clair]

I don't like the compact one because they take time to warm up and my family room is dim until then. I just bought three way bulbs to replace the compact ones. I'll move it to a room I don't use as much.

[Vixynne Rose]

It baffles me that people could pooh-pooh the idea of lights affecting the brain, as it's been pretty well-known for years that flashing or flickering lights can cause epileptic seizures.

I think too many people think this is an exaggeration or an old wives' tale, but it is completely true.
My son has petit mal epilepsy, and one of the first things his neurologist did was to try to trigger a seizure during an exam. He didn't flash lights at him in the office, but he did ask my son to focus on a plastic strip (reminiscent of a measuring tape) which had alternating black and white blocks on it. When pulled rapidly across his field of vision, it acted much like a flashing light.
Another test that was performed involved a sleeping EEG test. My son was sedated and hooked up to various electrodes all over his scalp. While he slept, technicians flashed a strobe light in his face--and apparently his eyes didn't need to be open for the light to get the necessary reaction. This test ended up being the definitive diagnosis of his petit mal condition.
I can totally see how flashing or blinking lights would trigger a migraine in people who are susceptible to them.

[Laurensa]

Most people I know that suffer from migraines. Light is a big factor.

I found working directly under fluorescent lights and using a LCD screen for the computer would kill my eyes and cause e horrid headaches bordering on migraines...the management could care less.

Unfortunately the news cast was now saying and I cannot find the clip...that the low frequency hum of the compact bulbs are now adding fuel to migraine sufferers.


I have a flourescent light over my kitchen sink, and it is on ONLY when I am doing the dishes. That hum does indeed drive me completely bats.

Cold wind and/or rain gives me a migraine. Yeah, guess what the weather was like yesterday. And guess who was at Hershey Park yesterday.

[Capt. Stamina]

And for those that might have forgotten; the incandescent bulb will be phasedd out and replaced with fluorescent and halogen bulbs.

Federal law will require lighting to use up to 30 percent less energy, which will basically phase out the traditional light bulb because it won't be able to meet the new efficiency standards.

The higher efficiency requirements under the new energy law kick in for the 100-watt bulb beginning in 2012, followed by the 75-watt bulb a year later and then 40- and 60-watt bulbs will be phased out in 2014.

[Laurensa]

The other thing I have been told about migraine sufferers is that too much visual stimuli will overwhelm them. Probably why I have so much trouble driving in busy city traffic. And now that you mention it I cannot shop in the chain stores during the busy times...I end up developing a migraine. I never put the clues together before! :roll:

This is precisely why I don't drive, although for me, I never attributed it to migraines as much as ADD. I have no priority filters. The squirrel in the tree is given equal brain space with the three trucks in the next traffic lane...not good...

Busy stores are a nightmare for me. And WalMart, with its overfilled aisles and hordes of people? Fuggedaboutit. I freak. That store leaves me on the verge of hysteria.

[SHpepperKat]

And for those that might have forgotten; the incandescent bulb will be phasedd out and replaced with fluorescent and halogen bulbs.

Federal law will require lighting to use up to 30 percent less energy, which will basically phase out the traditional light bulb because it won't be able to meet the new efficiency standards.

The higher efficiency requirements under the new energy law kick in for the 100-watt bulb beginning in 2012, followed by the 75-watt bulb a year later and then 40- and 60-watt bulbs will be phased out in 2014.
I've been thinking about that. I just figure that I will have to create a major stock pile of incandescents before they get rid of them totally. It's the only thing I can think of to do. I truly hope that there is a way to get a light bulb that doesn't cause migrance and is energy efficent. That would be the best way to go. Will just have to wait and see what happens.