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While medicine may be just the thing to cure that raging ear infection, it is not the only option when it comes to treating depression. Dr. Michael Terman and his research team at Columbia-Presbyterian Medical Center and the New York State Psychiatric Institute are developing cutting edge environmental therapies -- therapies that use naturally occurring elements like light and negative air ions to supplement the indoor environment -- to treat depression in its many incarnations. Initially discovered as a treatment for Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), environmental therapies also look promising for chronic depression and depression during pregnancy. By mimicking nature's optimum light and air conditions, environmental therapy may offer tremendous mood benefits without the side effects of medication or herbal remedies.

The Syndromes

Also known as Winter Depression, Seasonal Affective Disorder strikes nearly 6% of the population. Throughout the cold, short days of winter, it is common for people to complain of feeling down, having less energy than usual, putting on a few pounds, and having difficulty getting out of bed in the morning. So, how do you know if this truly is SAD or something milder?

While almost 17% of the population in the middle-to-northern U.S. experiences some degree of winter blues, people suffering from SAD experience symptoms that severely affect their functioning. SAD sufferers often feel chronically depressed and fatigued, perform poorly at work, and want to withdraw from the world or avoid social contact. They may experience substantial increases in sleep and irresistible carbohydrate cravings (for sweets, starches or both). Any individual, however, need not show all of these symptoms, and sometimes a symptom is actually the opposite of the norm, such as insomnia instead of excessive sleep. Short of a psychiatric diagnosis, a useful tool for preliminary self-assessment is the Personal Inventory for Depression and SAD, downloadable for free at www.cet.org.

In contrast to people with winter depression -- who feel good again once spring arrives -- people with chronic depression feel down almost all the time. In addition to an overriding sense of sadness, people with chronic depression suffer from sleep and appetite problems, decreased productivity and social isolation. Many have tried multiple medications, which have been only partially helpful or of no help at all. When these "wonder" drugs fail, people with chronic depression often blame themselves for not getting better and become resigned to lifelong depression. This is where environmental therapy offers special hope.

The Future

While scientists are still investigating the precise mechanism that makes environmental therapy work, new research indicates that it resets the body's internal clock, which controls daily rhythms of body temperature, hormone secretion, sleep, alertness and mood.

Dr. Terman at Columbia is currently investigating new environmental treatments and refining existing ones in clinical trials sponsored by the National Institutes of Health. With this kind of research arsenal behind it, the future looks bright for environmental therapy.

For more information about environmental therapy and joining clinical trials, please log on to www.lightandions.org or call 212-543-6531 ext. 3 (chronic) or ext. 4 (SAD).