Re-discover the joy of reading with lighting

The joy of reading should not be diminished just because your eyesight might not be as good as it used to be. Did you know that the lighting can make a real difference to making the most of your sight and can help you re-discover the joy of reading?

Desk, floor, and portable lamps are perfect additions to your home, and you don’t have to be a serious reader to see the benefits. Increasing the right amount of lighting in your home can have numerous benefits to improving independence and well-being, as well as reducing trips and falls. 

To benefit from using lights, ensure you have the right desk or floor lamp when you are reading, and you are sitting in a comfortable position, this will help to maximise your enjoyment of reading.  Ensure you are in a position where you can use extra lighting and can angle the lamp head, so the light is shining directly onto the page and not in your eyes...

Sitting with a light below your eye level is better as it reduces the light shining in your eyes and reduces the risk of too much glare. Glare can be very uncomfortable so ensure the light you are using is shining directly on your page or what you are trying to see.
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Adding extra lamps into your home can have wider benefits especially as the winter nights draw in. Make sure you do not walk into a dark room, always ensure you have a light on when you enter the room.  It takes your eyes time to adjust when you walk out of a well-lit room into a dark room so be aware of this in your home.

Elumentis LED Low Vision desk lamp

When buying a desk or floor standing lamp make a few checks first to ensure you are getting the right product.

• The arm of the lamp should be flexible; this means you should be able to change the position of the light, so it is shining directly on what you are trying to read.
• The base should be solid so the lamp is stable and the on and off switch should be easy to find. When you extend the arm, you do not want the lamp to wobble and tip over.
• The shade of your lamp should not get hot. Associated Optical have a good example of this type of Lamp, and it has bright LED’s that mean the shade stays cool to touch. It also has a dimmer which allows you to adapt the brightness of the light depending on how much light you need.

• Easy to use and locate on/off buttons
 

• Affordable- you don’t need to spend over £200 on reading lamps, there are many good lamps on the market that offer the same results.

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