I HAD NO PROBLEM STAYING UP ALL NIGHT AND WORKING THROUGH THE NIGHT, BUT THERE WERE PEOPLE WHO WOULD FALL ASLEEP STANDING ON THERE FEET, OR SITTING AT THEIR COMPUTERS.

NOW THAT I AM RETIRED, I HAVE A HARD TIME SLEEPING AT NIGHT, AND STAYING AWAKE DURING THE DAY.

Biol Psychiatry. 2009 Sep 15;66(6):549-53.

Is serum brain-derived neurotrophic factor a biomarker for cognitive enhancement in schizophrenia?

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19368899

Also noted in this review article:

Dialogues Clin Neurosci. 2010;12(3):416-21.

Cognitive training in schizophrenia: a neuroscience-based approach.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3181983/pdf/DialoguesClinNeurosci-12-416.pdf

(Full free text)

Earlier this year it was reported that air pollution seems to impair the expected increase in BDNF after exercise:

Neurosci Lett. 2011 Aug 15;500(2):129-32.

No exercise-induced increase in serum BDNF after cycling near a major traffic road.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21708224

The juxtaposition of these articles invites consideration of Posit Science programs in the rehabilitation of cognitive impairment triggered by immune system reactivity.

However, in some cases reactivity may continue long after an immunologial event — probably most often in individuals with a poorly modulated immune system.

IMO, the combination of Posit Science training and dietary supplementation with certain anti-inflammatory polyunsaturated lipids of the type descibed here:

Am J Clin Nutr. 2008 Feb;87(2):498S-503S.

Mechanisms by which botanical lipids affect inflammatory disorders.

http://www.ajcn.org/content/87/2/498S.full.pdf+html

…may well yield a better clinical outcome for patients than either intervention by itself.

One difficulty with lipid supplementation of this type, however, is that significant decreases in inflammatory cytokine activity can take several months:

Clin Sci (Lond). 1994 Dec;87(6):711-7.

Modulation of cytokine production in vivo by dietary essential fatty acids in patients with colorectal cancer.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/7874864

It is unfortunate that important variables (like indices of immune system reactivity) that could materially affect the outcome of clinical trials are frequently not considered.

Clinical Trails submission by University of Oulu (Finland)

Bright Light Therapy in Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD)

http://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/study/NCT01293409

James Randi Educational Foundation Thread
This study’s data is subject to question — post by “Eoghan” (scroll down).

http://forums.randi.org/showthread.php?t=210470

“Some facts:

There are two versions of the trial (id=NCT01293409) on clinicalTrials.gov. The initial 2011.02.09 version lists “placebo controlled” as a design element. The second and final version from 2011.05.31, contains the results of the study. That final version also seems to have had the “placebo controlled” element deleted. (See “History of Changes” at clinicalTrials.gov)

The NCT01293409 trial was described as having three groups (Placebo, Intermediate dose, High dose) with an estimated enrollment of 90.

On the Valkee site, the clinical trial is described as follows: “During the four-week study period 89 subjects suffering from SAD received 12-min daily doses of photic energy in three different randomly divided groups (1, 4, 9 lumen).”

Some speculation:

The clinical trial referred to by Valkee seems to be NCT01293409. However in the Valkee study the placebo group has disappeared and has become the ’1 lumen’ treatment group.

Could it be that Valkee ran the study originally using a placebo group but the actual results showed that even the placebo group elicited a strong response? Indeed as noted above by Kuko 4000 the 1-lumen group outperforms the 9-lumen group.

Faced with these results could Valkee have decided that the 1-lumen light level was not a placebo but was sufficient to cause an improvement in symptoms of SAD? So the placebo group was re-classified as a treatment group?

It may be true that the 1-lumen light has a genuine non-placebo effect. But it may equally be true that none of the three levels of light (1, 4, 9-lumens) has a genuine (non-placebo) effect and all results are due solely to the placebo effect. Having no placebo group, how can Valkee be sure as to what is going on in their study? The improvement in SAD may be real but Valkee cannot exclude that this is due to the placebo effect.

And the placebo effect may be very strong here given that a previous study had shown a biological effect on the brain triggered by light fed in through the ears and confirmed using fMRI (assuming that the trial volunteers were told about this study when recruited)”

Valkee “Scientific Program and Results”, with links

[Mainly poster session reports still awaiting publication in a peer-reviewed journal.]

http://www.valkee.com/uk/science.html#navigation

Latest press release:

HELSINKI, December 14, 2011 — /PRNewswire/ –
Bright Light Therapy via Ear Canals Improved Reaction Times of Top Athletes in a Placebo-Controlled Psycho-Motoric Study

http://www.sacbee.com/2011/12/14/4121551/bright-light-therapy-via-ear-canals.html

[Again, not yet published as a peer-reviewed journal article.]

Is the ear the best place to shine light? Utube demonstration of a different opinion:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QDgzE8fm500

The company isn’t selling the Valkee in the United States yet, but some distributors in Finland offer their device on eBay. The latest model is the NPT-1100.

One possible index of customer satisfaction. There don’t seem to be used Valkees listed by dissatisfied customers on either the USA or UK eBay sites.

It is not clear why the same effect claimed by the manufacturer can’t also be tested with a pair of small variable-intensity LED flashlights capable of a low-lumen output in the range of the Valkee device.