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Colours at Chelsea
I’m off to the Chelsea Flower Show tomorrow- courtesy of my friends at Dulux.
I’m looking forward to the glorious colours, of course.
There is plenty of research into human preferences for flower colours, with blue, white and orange consistently coming out top of the pops for uplifting, energising and warming effects – Flowers – Sunshine for the soul! How does floral colour influence preference, feelings of relaxation and positive up-lift?
If you’ve ever wonderd how those colours are actually generated in the plant, this blog with animations offers a brilliant explanation: a remarkable combination of nature (genes controlling the protein production) and nuture (environmental cues directing the strength and timing of that expression) – The Genetics of Flower Color, including the spectrum of light itself – Natural vs. Artificial Light: A Study on the Influence of Light Source on Chlorophyll Content and Photosynthetic Rates on Indoor Plants.
But, to quote Sinek- the first question is always ‘why’?
The obvious response is to attract pollinators and birds, not to us.
Given that insect vision evolved millenia before flowers, their colours evolved to stand out among the rocks and vegetation around at the time, as this fascinating new computer-simulation-driven research shows, with spectra optimised for peak ‘marker points’ in insect and avian visual sensitivities – Ancient insect vision tuned for flight among rocks and plants underpins natural flower colour diversity.
Of course, humans have been exerting selective pressures on flowers for centuries, choosing traits like size of bloom over qualities more attractive to natural pollinators like insects and bees who tend to go for attributes like scent and stamen length – Humans Share More Preferences for Floral Phenotypes With Pollinators Than With Pests.
Whatever your preference – and however ‘artificial’ the blooms may be, giving someone recovering in hospital a plant, especially one with flowers, will reduce their blood pressure, pain, anxiety and fatigue. It may even help them get home to their own plants more quickly – Ornamental Indoor Plants in Hospital Rooms Enhanced Health Outcomes of Patients Recovering from Surgery.
Make May Purple
May is Stroke Awareness Month in the UK.
According to the World Stroke Organisation, stroke is the second-leading cause of death among non-communicable diseases around the world. One in four adults over 25 will experience a stroke in our lifetime, 60% of those will happen before we’re 60 years old. Not only is stroke devastating for survivors, but it places a heavy financial burden on caregivers and the healthcare system – Stroke Facts.
Stroke is a major concern in residential healthcare, where around 7% of people will suffer a stroke within a year of moving in, while around one in ten people will be discharged to long term care following a stroke – Survival and outcomes for stroke survivors living in care homes: a prospective cohort study.
So what’s that got to do with light?
A number of the key modifiable risk factors are directly linked to keeping your body clock on track, including heart disease, diabetes and depression. So making sure you get enough light (ideally daylight) in the morning and get to sleep at the same time every night in a dark, quiet space is a great place to start.
Anders West is one of the scientists at the forefront of research into the link between circadian rhythmicity and stroke risk and recovery. For example, Anders notes that most strokes happen in the morning, linked to the circadian component of the coagulation system, suggesting a promising avenue for prevention, especially among people at higher risk – Impact of the circadian clock on fibrinolysis and coagulation in healthy individuals and cardiovascular patients – A systematic review.
Anders also points out that most people recovering from a stroke under ‘standard’ lighting show almost no circadian rhythmicity in melatonin and cortisol levels. They also complain of depression and fatigue, considering these the most significant side-effects, worse than the other impacts we might think of such as loss of speech and mobility.
Anders’ pioneering work, installing circadian lighting in his unit in Copenhagen in collaboration with Chromaviso not only effectively entrained his patients, but led to significant reduction in those debilitating side-effects – An exploratory investigation of the effect of naturalistic light on fatigue and subjective sleep quality in stroke patients admitted for rehabilitation: A randomized controlled trial.
Listen to his talk here.
And for more information on stroke and to support their vital campaigning and research work, please follow these links – World Stroke Organization, American Stroke Association, Stroke Association.
The Eye can’t see
Most of us don’t realise that our eyesight has got worse.
The ageing process is one reason – but neurodegenerative diseases – Dementia and sight loss, and other conditions like stroke accelerate the process – up to 85% of stroke survivors suffer from some form of visual disturbance – Persistent visual perceptual disorders after stroke: Associated factors, and yet around 40% of them don’t flag it up – “Eye” Don’t See: An Analysis of Visual Symptom Reporting by Stroke Survivors from a Large Epidemiology Study.
That matters because of the direct link between sight loss and depression – Visual impairment and risk of depression: A longitudinal follow-up study using a national sample cohort, as well as increased risk of falls – Association between vision impairment and increased prevalence of falls in older US adults.
Eye tests are essential. But light can help.
Firstly, when you pop in to see an older friend or relative, simply ask if they can see okay: don’t assume that they see as you do, feel confident in expressing a concern – or feel they have the choice or control over their lighting: many come from a generation where ‘playing with the lights’ were both discouraged.
Consider placing furniture near windows – daylight boosts mood and alertness, depth perception and visual comfort – The Effect of Daylight Illumination in Nursing Buildings on Reading Comfort of Elderly Persons.
Offer the option to add more lighting in functional areas like bathrooms, kitchens and reading spaces, and adding extra lighting around steps and doors – can significantly reduce the risk of tripping up.
Add a lighting strip around the bathroom door— shown to help older adults walk more smoothly in one scientific study – my mum certainly loves hers – Exploring Older Adults’ Nighttime Trips to the Bathroom Under Different Lighting Conditions: An Exploratory Field Study.