Bright white light therapy in depression: A critical review of the evidence

Bright white light therapy is associated with a statistically significant reduction in depressive symptoms for seasonal affective disorder at two and three weeks of treatment.

• Eight studies focused on seasonal affective disorder and two on non-seasonal depression met inclusion criteria for evaluation.
• In a meta-analysis, week-by-week treatment effects for seasonal affective disorder showed significant improvements at two weeks (Standardized Mean Difference: -0.50) and three weeks (-0.31).
• Another meta-analysis of endpoint data indicated a Standardized Mean Difference of -0.54, suggesting a benefit for bright white light therapy.
• No meta-analysis was conducted for non-seasonal depression due to differences in study designs.
• Methodological issues were prevalent in most studies, raising questions about the robustness of the findings.

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