A health advocate in Alabama penned an article this week encouraging people to get more sunshine to treat “winter blues” – a condition formally known as Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD). Sherry Mullenix, a nurse who co-owns a pharmacy in Alabama, penned an article in The North Jefferson News recommending light therapy as a treatment for SAD.

“Because increased sunlight improves symptoms, light therapy is often a main treatment for many people with seasonal affective disorder,” Mullenix wrote in the story. “Light therapy mimics outdoor light and causes a biochemical change in your brain that lifts your mood, relieving symptoms of seasonal affective disorder… Let there be light. Make your home sunnier and brighter. Open blinds, add skylights and trim tree branches that block sunlight.”

The term S.A.D. Was first coined by Dr. Norman Rosenthal, a National Institutes for Health researcher who has referred patients to indoor tanning facilities for light therapy. Millions of indoor tanning clients come to tanning facilities to informally treat “winter blues” in light-deprived winter months. In fact, indoor tanning equipment was first used in Europe for this purpose — the cosmetic indoor tan was a side-effect of the light therapy.

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