Artificial LED light impacts on employee wellness
Modern workplaces often rely on LED lighting because it is efficient and controllable, but the quality of a light environment cannot be judged by the light source alone. Daylight access, illuminance, glare, timing, duration, controls, and spectral characteristics all influence visual comfort and may affect circadian responses. HWS considers these factors together, alongside the needs of the people using the space.
The gloomy ‘cave effect’
Worse still, many open-plan offices suffer from low vertical illuminance, creating a gloomy ‘cave effect’ that affects mood and productivity.
Lighting and Workplace experience
The workplace environment can make a meaningful contribution to how people feel and function throughout the day. We examine how light may influence visual comfort, alertness, fatigue, and the overall experience of a space, bringing together established knowledge and carefully evaluated emerging research. By combining professional lighting expertise with current sleep and circadian science, we identify practical opportunities to create more supportive, biologically informed workplaces in which people can perform at their best.
Artificial LED light impacts on employee health
Natural light, when it’s available, can be part of the solution but only when carefully balanced with artificial sources. Desks awkwardly placed near windows or directly facing screens can create harsh contrasts and screen glare, compounding discomfort. New research into workplace employee wellness increasingly points to the need for more thoughtful lighting design that supports health, not just visibility. If your office lighting leaves your team squinting, tired, or calling in sick, it might be time to take a closer look.
Feeling in the dark? Let’s brighten things up beautifully and sensibly.
Workplace lighting assessments
A well-lit workplace is not just about visibility, it’s about vitality. Our lighting assessments for businesses evaluate your offices, workspaces, healthcare facilities or retail environments with one goal in mind: enhancing health, wellbeing, and productivity. From pinpointing sources of glare and insufficient vertical illuminance to identifying areas with poor daylight integration, we look at how your lighting currently performs and what could be done better. Whether it’s a subtle rebalancing of what’s already there or the introduction of entirely new layers of light, we’ll help you achieve an atmosphere your staff can thrive in, not just tolerate.
HWS workplace lighting assessments bring established visual and circadian guidance together with carefully evaluated developments in red and near-infrared research. We consider daylight access, illuminance at the task and at the eye, glare, timing and duration, spectral characteristics, controls, user needs, and the practical demands of each space as one connected system. This gives organisations a clear view of what can be improved now, where future opportunities are emerging, and how lighting can better support the people who use the workplace.
Book a survey of your facilities and let us show you how to light for life, not just for tasks.
Improving Health of Employees
Considering the light spectrum
Light spectrum is one characteristic of a workplace lighting environment, alongside illuminance, glare, timing, duration, daylight access, and individual needs. Different wavelengths can produce different biological responses under specific conditions, but findings from laboratory or targeted light-exposure studies should not be assumed to predict health outcomes from ordinary workplace lighting. HWS considers spectral information as part of a balanced, evidence-led assessment.
Lighting quality is multifactorial
Poorly designed workplace lighting can contribute to visual discomfort, particularly where illuminance, luminance distribution, glare, flicker, colour quality, timing, or user control are unsuitable. Spectral characteristics can also influence retinal photoreceptor stimulation, but their effects depend on the complete exposure and should not be reduced to a simple comparison between blue, red, or infrared content. HWS therefore evaluates the lighting environment as a whole rather than attributing headaches, fatigue, or absence to a single wavelength range.
From evidence to practical action
Health Wellness Sleep turns lighting, sleep, and circadian research into practical workplace action. We examine how daylight, electric light, spectrum, timing, visual comfort, controls, and individual needs interact across the working day, then identify improvements suited to the building, its occupants, and the organisation’s priorities. This creates a clear route from evidence and innovation to a more comfortable, adaptable, and biologically informed workplace.
Lorraine’s wider professional lighting work through it does Lighting Ltd has included workplace assessments for organisations such as Nike, Michael Kors, and Kate Spade. This experience informs HWS’s approach to reviewing light environments and identifying practical issues including glare, insufficient illuminance, poor daylight integration, unsuitable timing, and limited user control. Clients receive clear, proportionate recommendations to help them make confident decisions and create more comfortable, adaptable, and thoughtfully lit workplaces.
Let us help your workplace feel better, because when your people thrive, so does your business.
Light exposure within the Workplace
Natural daylight is the original, and still our richest and most dynamic, light source, a form of environmental “light nutrition” to which human biology responds throughout the day. Light received by the eyes, particularly earlier in the waking day, helps to anchor circadian timing and supports daytime alertness, hormone rhythms, and sleep at night. Yet modern working patterns and building design can limit this valuable exposure, especially during the darker winter months in the Northern Hemisphere.
Encouraging people to spend time outdoors during the working day, even for a short break, can provide a far stronger light signal than most indoor environments. Courtyard meetings, walking catch-ups, bright naturally lit spaces, and covered outdoor work areas with suitable heating can all make daylight more accessible throughout the year.
The research is also moving into exciting new territory: carefully controlled human studies using defined red and near-infrared exposures have reported promising effects on specific physiological outcomes, including aspects of glucose response and age-related visual function, while wider research continues to explore how longer wavelengths interact with mitochondria and tissues.
The lighting industry is increasingly recognising that energy efficiency, visual quality, environmental responsibility, and human biology must be considered together. We bring current research and professional lighting knowledge together to help organisations explore these possibilities responsibly and turn emerging science into practical action.
Want to build a culture of light-driven employee wellbeing? Start by stepping outside.
The Research
Measuring and using light in the melanopsin age Robert J. Lucas, Stuart N. Peirson, David M. Berson, Timothy M. Brown, Howard M. Cooper, Charles A. Czeisler, Mariana G. Figueiro, Paul D. Gamlin, Steven W. Lockley, John B. O’Hagan, Luke L.A. Price, Ignacio Provencio, Debra J. Skene, and George C.Brainard
Light is a potent stimulus for regulating circadian, hormonal, and behavioral systems. In addition, light therapy is effective for certain affective disorders, sleep problems, and circadian rhythm disruption. These biological and behavioral effects of light are influenced by a distinct photoreceptor in the eye, melanopsin containing intrinsically photosensitive retinal ganglion cells (ipRGCs), in addition to conventional rods and cones. We summarize the neurophysiology of this newly described sensory pathway and consider implications for the measurement, production, and application of light. A new light-measurement strategy taking account of the complex photoreceptive inputs to these non-visual responses is proposed for use by researchers, and simple suggestions for artificial/ architectural lighting are provided for regulatory authorities, lighting manufacturers, designers, and engineers.
Circadian Adaptive Lighting Deborah Burnett, ASID, CMG, LGC, AASM
For decades, both the installation and operating costs associated with electric lighting systems has been considered an ongoing monetary expense when it comes to ROI. Accounting for up to 22%1 of yearly business expense, rising energy costs are driving the growing acceptance of modern building science solutions which employ electronic lighting sources and daylighting technologies for the purpose of reducing ongoing operating costs. However the shift towards energy efficient lighting practices can only be thought of as a first step towards reducing ongoing business related costs. A lighting strategy which has the potential to reduce healthcare premiums and related healthcare burden will be a paradigm shift with direct financial benefit. In 2011, the Kaiser Family Foundation report calculated the average business contribution for family health care premiums alone to be $10,944.00 per employee per year. Recognized as Circadian Adaptive Lighting this new lighting strategy has the potential for creating a health promoting built environment while fostering lean bottom line yearly expense. In the coming years ahead, the effectiveness of this strategy will be evident in three areas: a.) measurable enhanced sleep efficiencies, now recognized as instrumental in health promotion, preventing disease and major contributor in the healing process, b.) measurable lower allostatic load index scores, a biomarker and non- invasive health assessment used to determine physiological dysregulation in the workplace now also recognized as an indicator of disease trajectories2, 3.) and for business owners, an overall reduction of expense line items including: employer health care premiums, costs associated with medical and employee errors, and the escalating costs associated with workplace accidents and fatalities especially among shift work populations. A lighting strategy which is supportive of the human need for both ambient light and darkness levels suitably designed to impact the human circadian system will be the way forward in transferring lighting costs from a line item expense to a valued investment asset.
Quantified benefits of Human Centric Lighting A.T. Kearney
- Human Centric Lighting is the inclusion of visual and non-visual (biological) needs of humans in the design of lighting applications.
- Our project aimed at delivering arguments for the use of human centric lighting from a customer perspective and simulated segment-specific economic benefits on micro and macro level.
- On the micro level (perspective of individual investors, e.g. facility owners):
- Most significant quantified benefits are realized in industrial segments due to the dominant impact of productivity increases
- Medical and elderly care segments show less attractive quantified benefits, as most savings cannot be realized by the investor, but by other stakeholders, e.g. insurance companies
- On the macro level (perspective of the general public, e.g. health insurances):
- Macro level simulations yield Human Centric Lighting effects for Europe in 2020 of up to € 0.87 bn assuming a realistic market penetration1 and € 12.8 bn if the 2020 lighting market was fully penetrated by Human Centric Lighting
- In most segments, benefits for owners and investors dominate
- However, additional social and public benefits can also justify Human Centric Lighting markups
Effect of home-based light treatment on persons with dementia and their caregivers PD Sloane MD MPH, M Figueiro PhD, S Garg MD PhD, LW Cohen MA, D Reed PhD, CS Williams PhD, J Preisser PhD and S Zimmerman PhD Cecil G. Sheps Center for Health Services Research, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA Department of Family Medicine, School of Medicine, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA Lighting Research Center, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, NY, USA Department of Ophthalmology, School of Medicine, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA Department of Biostatistics, School of Public Health, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA School of Social Work, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
Sleep disorders are problematic for persons with dementia and their family caregivers. This randomized controlled trial with crossover evaluated the effects of an innovative blue-white light therapy on 17 pairs of home-dwelling persons with dementia and their caregivers. Subjects with dementia received blue-white light and control (‘red-yellow’ light) for six weeks separated by a four-week washout. Neither actigraphic nor most self-reported sleep measures significantly differed for subjects with dementia. For caregivers, both sleep and role strain improved. No evidence of retinal light toxicity was observed. Six weeks of modest doses of blue- white light appear to improve sleep in caregivers but not in persons with dementia. Greater or prolonged circadian stimulation may be needed to determine if light is an effective treatment for persons with dementia.
Light Therapy and Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Dementia: Past, Present, and Future Nicholas Hanforda, Mariana Figueiro
Sleep disturbances are common in persons with Alzheimer’s disease or related dementia (ADRD), resulting in a negative impact on the daytime function of the affected person and on the wellbeing of caregivers. The sleep/wake pattern is directly driven by the timing signals generated by a circadian pacemaker, which may or may not be perfectly functioning in those with ADRD. A 24-hour light/dark pattern incident on the retina is the most efficacious stimulus for entraining the circadian system to the solar day. In fact, a carefully orchestrated light/dark pattern has been shown in several controlled studies of older populations, with and without ADRD, to be a powerful non-pharmacological tool to improve sleep efficiency and consolidation. Discussed here are research results from studies looking at the effectiveness of light therapy in improving sleep, depression, and agitation in older adults with ADRD. A 24-hour lighting scheme to increase circadian entrainment, improve visibility, and reduce the risk of falls in those with ADRD is proposed, and future research needs are discussed.
Sleep Deprivation in Critical Illness: Its Role in Physical and Psychological Recovery Biren B. Kamdar, MD, MBA, Dale M. Needha,, MD, PhD, and Nancy A. Collop, MD
Critically ill patients frequently experience poor sleep, charactersized by frequent disruptions, loss of circadian rhytems, and a paucity of times spent in restorative sleep stages. Factors that are associated with sleep disruption in the intensive are unit (ICU) include patient-ventilator dysynchrony, medications, patient care interactions, and environmental noise and light. As the field of critical care increasingly focuses on patients’ physical and psychological outcomes following critical illness, understanding the potential contribution of ICU-related sleep disruptions on patient recovery is an important area of investigation. This review article summarizes the literature regarding sleep a architecture and measurement in the critically ill, causes of ICU sleep fragmentation, and potential implications of ICU-related sleep disruption on patient’s recovery from critical illness. With this background information, strategies to optimize sleep in the ICU are also discussed,
Melanopsin Ganglion Cells: A Bit of Fly in the Mammalian Eye Dustin M. Graham
For the greater part of 150 years it was assumed that the mammalian retina contained only two types of photoreceptors; rods and cones. However, a flurry of recent evidence has demonstrated the existence of a third type of mammalian photoreceptor that differs greatly from rods and cones. This type utilizes a different photopigment, is much less sensitive to light, and has far less spatical resolution; characteristics that fit perfectly with this photoreceptor’s primary function if signaling changes in ambient light levels to the brain throughout the day. Most surprisingly, these photoreceptors are ganglion cells, and thus, have the uniwue ability to communicate directly with the brain. These intrinsically photosensitive retinal ganglion cells (ipRGCs) are a rate sub-population of ganglion cells (1-3%) whose primary role is to signal light for unconscious visual reflexes, such as pupillary constriction, and regulating a number of daily behavioral and physiological rhythms, collectively called circadian rhythms. This latter process, which adjusts circadian rhythms to the light/dark cycle of an animal’s environment, is known as photoentrainment. The visual behaviors under ipRGC control are remarkably tonic, and require long integration times of ambient light levels. The unique properties of ipRGCs, both functionally and anatomically, make them well suited for regulating such behaviors.
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Spectrally specific circadian lighting
True circadian lighting isn’t just about dimming down or shifting from cool to warm white, it’s about precision. Circadian integrative lighting delivers carefully tuned wavelengths at the right intensities throughout the day to properly support biological processes like hormone regulation, body temperature, and alertness. This is especially vital in environments where outdoor light exposure is limited, such as hospitals, care homes, and workplaces with shift patterns. If artificial lighting is the only source of circadian entrainment, it needs to do more than just look nice, it needs to work biologically.
Many lighting systems on the market today are marketed as “circadian-friendly,” but most fall short of providing the full spectral support our bodies require. Often, they improve psychological perception, making a space feel pleasant, but fail to influence physiology in a meaningful way. That’s where our independence becomes your advantage. We’re not tied to any manufacturer, so we specify only what meets your real needs, lighting that genuinely supports sleep, wellbeing, and long-term health.
Ready to bring precision lighting into your workplace? Let’s talk spectrum, not sales pitches.
Working from Home
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Home working may be here to stay
Home working may be here to stay, but let’s face it, your kitchen counter or spare room wasn’t exactly designed for eight hours of screen time. Many home workspaces are visually comfortable for relaxation but entirely unsuited to the visual demands of concentrated work.
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Too much daylight
Too much daylight, too little, the wrong kind of artificial light, awkward seating, or simply a cramped layout all contributes to headaches, eye strain, and reduced productivity. Add in the temptation to stay in one spot for too long, and suddenly home working becomes less about freedom and more about fatigue.
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Good news
The good news is that a few simple tweaks can transform your space. We can help you create a healthier, more effective working environment without turning your living room into a corporate cubicle.
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The right balance
From standalone lighting solutions that support circadian rhythms to clever layout adjustments that protect your vision and posture, we’ll help you strike the right balance between home comfort and work functionality.
Love working from home again, with lighting that works as hard as you do.
Frequently Asked Questions – Workplace Wellness
Why is daylight important during the working day?
Daylight is one of the strongest time signals available to the human body. Exposure during the day, particularly earlier in our waking period, helps the circadian system distinguish day from night and can support alertness, mood, and sleep later on. In the workplace, daylight should be welcomed without creating glare, overheating, or uncomfortable contrast. The aim is simple: use daylight intelligently so that people can see comfortably, remain connected to the time of day, and work in an environment that feels naturally supportive.
How can daylight and artificial light support patients and healthcare staff?
Healthcare lighting can do far more than help people see. Daylight and a well-planned pattern of light and darkness can help patients recognise the time of day, support sleep, and make care environments feel calmer and more humane. Staff need lighting that supports safe, demanding work while also recognising the realities of shift patterns and overnight exposure. HWS helps healthcare and estates teams translate this growing evidence into practical strategies suited to the people and routines of each setting.
Why does the spectrum of light matter to our health?
Light contains different wavelengths, and the body does not respond to all of them in the same way. Shorter visible wavelengths reaching the eyes are particularly important for signalling daytime and helping to set circadian timing. Research into red and near-infrared light is exploring how longer wavelengths may influence mitochondrial activity and other physiological processes, with promising findings under defined conditions. Our consultations translate this developing science into clear, practical choices about light across the day for individuals and organisations alike.
What signs suggest that workplace lighting needs attention?
Lighting is worth reviewing when people regularly report glare or eye discomfort, struggle to concentrate, or describe a space as gloomy, harsh, or tiring. A professional assessment looks beyond brightness alone, considering flicker, glare, daylight, how light reaches the eyes, and colour quality — including the colour rendering index (CRI), which indicates how faithfully colours appear. Where appropriate, integrative lighting brings visual quality together with the way light can influence circadian rhythms, taking account of when people need to be alert and when they need to prepare for rest. This creates a lighting strategy shaped around the people, activities, and hours of use within the space.
How can better lighting change the way a workplace feels and performs?
The most successful lighting changes are felt as well as measured. We begin by understanding how people experience the space and what needs to improve, whether that is persistent glare, daytime tiredness, limited control, or a workplace that simply feels flat and disconnected from the outside world. Measurements at the task and at the eye, including melanopic EDI where relevant, then show whether the light is delivering the intended visual and circadian stimulus. Combined with feedback from the people who use the space, this creates a powerful evidence base for change – helping organisations build healthier working practices, a more responsive environment, and a culture that visibly values its people.
How can integrated approaches combining daylight harvesting, glare control, and adaptive artificial lighting be implemented across diverse interior settings (offices, retail, healthcare, homes) to promote ecological sustainability alongside human health?
An integrated strategy might employ automated shading systems and photocells to balance natural and artificial light, minimising artificial output when daylight suffices; incorporate luminaires with low flicker and high CRI; and leverage user centric controls such as smartphone apps or wall-mounted interfaces to allow personal autonomy within predefined healthy parameters. Utilising occupants’ behavioural data and building analytics can further optimise schedules, reduce carbon footprints, and ensure that sustainability goals align with occupant health and comfort.
Which international standards and guidelines (e.g., CIBSE, WELL Building Standard, Breeam V7) should organisations reference to ensure optimal lighting for human health and comfort?
Key references include:
- CIBSE SLL Code for Lighting (Chartered Institution of Building Services Engineers), which prescribes illuminance, uniformity, and glare limits for various task environments.
- WELL Building Standard, which mandates circadian lighting design strategies with specific vertical illuminance thresholds for daytime exposure using melanopic lux.
- EN 12464-1 (European Standard) for workplace lighting, addressing colour rendering, flicker, and glare control.
- IES DG-21–19 Circadian recommendations by the Illuminating Engineering Society, specifying spectral and temporal metrics to support human health.
- Breeam V7 now addresses a more holistic approach to a space focused around people and their biological need for light.
What is the difference between tuneable and integrative lighting?
Tuneable white lighting changes the colour appearance and, in many systems, the intensity of the light. It may follow a programmed schedule and can improve ambience and visual comfort, but changing from cool white to warm white does not, by itself, confirm that the circadian system is receiving an effective signal.
Integrative lighting is designed around both the visual and non-visual responses to light. It considers what reaches the eyes throughout the day, including its timing, duration, spectrum, and melanopic equivalent daylight illuminance – known as melanopic EDI – measured at eye level. A well-designed system can change dynamically in a way informed by the natural light–dark cycle, providing a stronger daytime signal when alertness is required and substantially less circadian stimulation at the appropriate time before rest.
The distinction is important: tuneability is a technical capability, while integrative lighting is an evidence-led design approach that uses light deliberately to influence visual experience, alertness, circadian timing, and wellbeing.
How can small businesses and home workers create a healthier light environment?
Start with the rhythm of the working day rather than buying another gadget. For home workers and small teams, exposure to bright daylight – preferably outdoors – during the earlier part of the waking day can provide an important daytime signal. Desks and work areas should be positioned so that daylight reaches people without creating glare or uncomfortable reflections on screens. Comfortable, flicker-controlled lighting can then support concentrated tasks, with the intensity reduced as the working period comes to an end, particularly where work continues into the evening. If the space, working pattern, light sensitivity, or sleep timing makes general advice difficult to apply, a personalised consultation or small-workplace assessment can identify changes that suit the people and setting.
How can an organisation assess the value of investing in better lighting?
Better lighting should be considered as an investment in the workplace, not simply as an energy cost. Published research has associated well-designed light environments with improved visual comfort and employee experience, with individual studies also reporting benefits for sleep, alertness, and aspects of performance. Intelligent controls and effective daylight use can contribute further value through reduced energy and maintenance demands. The strongest business case begins with a clear baseline and agreed objectives, followed by an assessment of what changes after the intervention. This allows each organisation to build an evidence-led case around its own people, building, and priorities.
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