Science Questions

Would having a light in your bedroom that’s triggered by a timer so the light then comes on and gently wakes you up help beat SAD? Keith in Watford

Getting higher levels of light in the morning would certainly help to beat Seasonal Affective Disorder. 

There was also an alarm clock made by researchers in America which was teathered to your brainwave patterns.  When you are dreaming and at certain points during the night you tend to have REM (rapid eye movements), this means your brain is much more active than when it’s in deep sleep.  If you wake someone up when the brain’s much more active then they feel much better and come-to much quicker than if you wake them up when they’re in a deep sleep. So with this clock which you set the ideal time to wake up, and then it follows your sleep pattern and wakes you up based on you brain activity as close to your ideal time as it can.

October 2007