http://www.bipolar4lifesupport.co

LONG READ
PART 2 Tomorrow 11/14/12

Some of the information on this page is uncertain. Much of it is new research, not yet repeated by other scientists (it is always a good sign in this business if someone can repeat the study and get the same results!). However, what you’ll read here is of great importance, because it points toward a non-medication treatment for bipolar disorder that’s cheap and easy and safe. So it seems worth presenting, even though the research in this realm is just in its beginning stages. I am proud to have made an initial contribution.Phelps, Burkhart
Here we’ll look at how light affects the brain; how lithium affects that same pathway; how exposure to light affects that pathway; and how we can use this knowledge as part of standard bipolar treatment.•How Light Affects the Brain
Rods, cones, and another receptor type
From the retina to the biological clock
How does the clock reset itself?
Light is central; so is DARKNESS
•Treatment Implications
Sleep and rhythm
Quality darkness, what a concept
Alert, alert: watch out for one kind of light
Yellow Eyeglasses to Avoid Blue Light?
Where can I buy the yellow eyeglasses?
Light therapies: dawn simulators, light boxes
f.lux, a computer program to shift light
•Conclusion
How Light Affects the Brain
You know about rods and cones, right? Those are the two kinds of receptors in your eyeball, on your retina, for light. But you didn’t know that there is another receptor for light in the eye (I’m guessing you don’t know, because until I came across this research, I didn’t know either).

Whereas the rods and cones send information to the visual cortex (the “occipital cortex”, at the back of your head), this other light receptor sends its information to your internal clock. The nerve cables from these receptors don’t even go to the vision center at all. They go straight to the middle of your brain, to a region of the hypothalamus called the suprachiasmatic nucleus, which is well known to be the location of the biological clock for us humans. (That’s an oversimplification but the general idea is correct. For the minute details, light researchers would prefer an overview and series of articles in