The Scarborough Hospital 3030 Lawrence Avenue East Toronto Canada 416 438 3525
For Patients
For Eye Care Professionals
Glare Control.
Many people with impaired vision are more affected by glare and extreme light levels than the general public.
These are general guidelines.
Lighting.
The preferred light source for most vision impaired persons of all diagnoses is a light source that is similar in colour to that of a sunrise or sunset. Lighting experts categorize the true colour of "white" light by the colour temperature in degrees Kelvin. Most people with low vision function better when the colour temperature is less than 3000 degrees K.
When purchasing lamps choose warm white flourescents, halogen or conventional tungsten lamps. Compact flourescents are my preferred choice due to the low heat output and low operating cost.
Avoid cool white, daylight or full spectrum lamps (K> 3500) they might sound like a good idea but the excessive blue in their colour spectrum is a major source of discomfort and glare.
Ikea has a wide range of suitable desk lamps with a 13W mini, warm white flourescent lamp that are inexpensive and highly effective. They are in use at the Scarborough Low Vision Centre.
Traditional lamps with lampshades look very nice but are laregly useless as an illuminant for the vision impaired.
Computer Placement