Light Therapy for Dementia: Meta-Analysis Shows Benefits for Sleep, Depression, and Cognition
Can light therapy help dementia patients with sleep and depression?
Yes. Light therapy effectively improves sleep, cognition, and reduces depression and behavioral problems in people with dementia, with administering light therapy twice daily showing greater benefits than once daily. A meta-analysis of 24 randomized controlled trials with over 1,000 participants published in The American Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry demonstrates that this low-cost, non-pharmacological intervention provides meaningful improvements across multiple symptom domains.