Why You Should Increase Natural Light in Your Boston Home

One of the greatest benefits of windows is their ability to increase natural light in the home. Natural light can help soften a room’s atmosphere and help people feel happier, healthier, and calmer. Every Boston homeowner should understand the value of natural light for its aesthetic and practical benefits. You may be surprised at the ways you can increase natural light inside your home with your selection of windows.

Consider the following benefits of increasing natural light in your Massachusetts home and think about whether your windows need repair or replacement soon. A bit of investment into better windows can result in significant economic savings and health benefits for you and your family.

Natural Light Reduces Electricity Consumption

Roughly half of all energy consumption in a home goes toward space conditioning or making the interior spaces of the home more comfortable for residents. This applies to lighting as well as heating and cooling, and natural light helps with all these concerns. Natural light can eliminate the need to use electrical lighting inside the home during the day. Extra sunshine into the home also helps retain a comfortable temperature inside and reduces the chances of mold, mildew, and other health hazards proliferating in the home.

Adding more natural light to a home can potentially reduce energy bills by as much as 75% in some areas. Homeowners who find ways to capitalize on available natural light can stop relying so much on electrical lights and appliances to keep their homes comfortable.

Natural Light Can Protect and Even Improve Physical Health

The natural light in a home acts as a natural deterrent against some pest infestations and can prevent the growth of mold and mildew that thrive in dark, moist environments. Sunshine is natural disinfectant in many ways and can help reduce the overall bacteria count in the air inside a home. Used in conjunction with an efficient ventilation and air circulation system, natural light inside the home can improve and preserve the physical health of your Massachusetts family.

Bacteria, mold spores, mildew, and other grime can cause serious health problems if left unchecked. A poorly lit home interior may allow these harmful substances to thrive unchecked long enough to cause significant property damage. Mold can damage the structure of a home and pose significant health risks to those inside, such as respiratory infections and other illnesses.

Natural Light May Relieve Symptoms of Some Mental Health Conditions

While natural light helps deter harmful substances like mold and mildew from accumulating inside a home, natural light is also a proven treatment for mental health conditions like seasonal affective disorder and depression. Natural light is healthier than artificial light for virtually everyone and can make a person feel happier, more energetic, and more productive. Just like an office worker with lots of natural light in his or her workspace will likely feel more comfortable and productive than an office worker under a harsh artificial light, natural light in the home helps keep the residents more comfortable in many ways.

Sunlight is the best source of vitamin D available to human beings, and unlike other essential nutrients, vitamin D is not readily available through food. The sun is a vital part of life for everyone and adding more natural light to your home increases all residents’ vitamin D levels. Vitamin D helps keep body weight at reasonable levels, boosts immune system functions, controls the symptoms of asthma, and preserves brain function later in life.

Natural light also helps prevent vision problems later in life by increasing dopamine production in the eyes, reducing the chances of developing nearsightedness in young children. Some studies report that hospitals that offer lots of natural light in patient rooms see faster patient recovery times than hospitals with only minimal natural light and more artificial lights.

Create Natural Light Therapy for Mental Health Symptoms

In addition to the physical benefits of vitamin D, this essential nutrient also helps fight symptoms of seasonal affective disorder and depression. Individuals who struggle with these conditions often find relief through light therapy, or exposure to natural light or specialized high-vitamin D lights. Natural light inherently lifts the spirits and can help fight off symptoms of depression from depressive disorders and seasonal affective disorder, a condition characterized by mood changes and depression symptoms during specific times of the year.

For example, a person with seasonal affective disorder may report symptoms of depression during the colder months. Winter means less sunshine thanks to shorter daylight hours and this can cause feelings of lethargy, lower energy levels in general, and feelings of sadness without specific causes. People who experience depression all year round often report their symptoms worsening around the winter months or other specific times of the year. For some people, seasonal affective disorder may strike during warmer weather or when the seasons change. The telltale characteristic of seasonal affective disorder is the individual reporting symptoms around the same time every year.

Natural light can act as light therapy in the home for Boston residents who struggle with depression and seasonal affective disorder. Think about ways to capitalize on this, such as rearranging furniture so a comfy chair or sofa rests directly in the available natural light during the day. A few minutes relaxing in the sunlight can ease symptoms of depression and seasonal affective disorder more than you might expect.

Think of How to Capitalize on Natural Light for Your Home

You may think your Boston home’s heating and cooling system is ineffective, but the culprit behind your high energy bills and fluctuating inside temperatures may be outdated windows. If you plan to update your home’s windows soon, think of ways to capitalize on available natural light. Investing in high-quality windows is a great way to preserve the comfort inside your home, and natural light will only increase the value of your windows.

You can find a plethora of options for shutters, blinds, and other window coverings that can help you manage the natural light in your home, keeping the interior as comfortable as possible all throughout the year. Evaluate your home’s windows and consider how much you could potentially save on your energy bills by investing in new windows that help you capitalize on the available natural light in your area.