Bright Idea? 40Hz Light & Sound Therapy for Alzheimer’s Prevention
Shall we stare at flashing lights today?
Watching someone you love living with Alzheimer’s slowly deteriorate has a devastating effect, and many people will do crazy things to avoid deteriorating themselves. Other people prefer to simply live their best lives.
I don’t know which attitude is right or wrong, just that they are different. I am most definitely in the first camp. When I eat raw kale, I fantasize that I am on a brief holiday at the second camp.
My most recent crazy thing? A table lamp the cost of my living room couch. Not a swanky mid-century modern lamp that would look fantastically cool in my mid-century modern living room, but an OptoCeutics 40hz EV LIGHT®.
In EV LIGHT®’s defense, it does have a sleek, contemporary Scandinavian design and could end up one day in the living room. So minimalist, in fact, that I just realized it has been on its side for the past several months.
What is a 40Hz Lamp?
The EV LIGHT® is a 40Hz strobe lamp that emits light flashes consistently at a rate of 40 times per second. This frequency aligns with the brain’s gamma waves, which are involved in cognitive functions.
Research has shown that people with Alzheimer’s often exhibit disrupted brainwave activity and that 40Hz can help to resynchronize the gamma waves. There have been small-scale promising studies confirming safety and suggesting Alzheimer’s benefits. To my knowledge, there are no studies regarding Alzheimer’s prevention.
Can you imagine the unpleasant effect staring at a lamp emitting 40 light flashes a second? It reminds me of staring into my hurricane hazard flashlight. If you would like to try it, however, there are some apps that claim to flash 40 Hz lights. Enjoy!
OptoCeutics has removed the annoying flashing while still achieving the stimulation effect on the brain. There are the slightest flickers, but it’s hardly noticeable.
Cognito Therapeutics, which licensed technology from MIT, also has a 40Hz device currently in phase 3 trials that releases 40 Hz light and sound. According to the Cognito Therapeutics website (link below) in their “Phase 2 OVERTURE trial, significant slowing of disease progression was observed among treated patients through the preservation of cognition, daily function, and whole brain volume. No serious treatment-limiting adverse events were reported.” Cognito’s device is not commercially available.
My EV LIGHT® experience
EV LIGHT® is a lamp and a corresponding App. The OptoCeutics website includes a lot of helpful explanations, videos and copies of research papers relevant to their product. Links below.
Per OptoCeutics, you do not need to stare directly into the light. I keep the EV LIGHT® on my desk and leave it on while I work. Cognito’s device incorporates both 40 Hz light and sound, and OptoCeutics recently added a sound component on their app. Prior to this addition, I listened to 40 Hz sound waves through a free app.
Although I can’t tell you if EV LIGHT® is helping me to prevent Alzheimer’s, I have great hopes for EV LIGHT®.
I am ecstatic about the new Alzheimer’s drugs on the market and extremely grateful for the work preceding their production and for FDA approval. However, I think we all would prefer an extra light in the office over an expensive bi-weekly or monthly infusion served with a possible side of brain bleeding.
Using EV LIGHT® seems to have no negative side effects, is safe for APOE4 gene carriers, and does not require a study partner.
The device is also not annoying – it’s just a light - and, at least on me, has a strange calming effect. In fact, I often find my eyes inexplicably drifting and staring into the light….especially now that it is no longer on its side.
EV LIGHT®’s downside is price, although considering the work that went into the light, is probably reasonable. If it helps to extend my cognitive life and enjoyment with my loved ones, it’s a bargain! Once the technology is more established, hopefully insurance will pick up at least a portion of the cost.
References:
I am not a doctor or medial professional. The purpose of this blog is to share my personal thoughts and encourage discussion. Please consult your doctor before making any dietary or health-related changes.
40 Hz Sound Gamma Therapy (Benefits, Uses & Safety) (OptoCeutics)
Small studies of 40-hertz sensory stimulation confirm safety, suggest Alzheimer’s benefits | MIT News | Massachusetts Institute of Technology (2023, “… exposing mice to light flickering or sound clicking at the gamma-band brain rhythm frequency of 40 hertz — or employing the light and sound together — produced widespread beneficial effects. Treated mice modeling Alzheimer’s disease pathology experienced improvements in learning and memory; reduced brain atrophy, neuron and synapse loss; and showed lower levels of the hallmark Alzheimer’s proteins amyloid beta and phosphorylated tau compared to untreated control”).
How 40Hz sensory gamma rhythm stimulation clears amyloid in Alzheimer's mice | ScienceDaily (2024, “In a new study in Nature using a mouse model of the disease, researchers at The Picower Institute for Learning and Memory of MIT reveal a key mechanism that may contribute to these beneficial effects: clearance of amyloid proteins, a hallmark of AD pathology, via the brain's glymphatic system, a recently discovered "plumbing" network parallel to the brain's blood vessels.”)