Fighting the winter blues with 10,000 lux
27/12/2024
Translation: Elicia Payne
More and more people are setting up a light therapy lamp in their offices or living room to combat winter blues. According to the sales data at Galaxus, the lamps are proving particularly popular amongst young people. There’s also an increasing demand for vitamins and zinc tablets.
When it’s cold and miserable outside, many people have low mood. Almost 60 per cent of German residents are affected by the season. Around two in a hundred people in our part of the world suffer from winter depression (links in German).
As a result, daylight lamps have become a part of everyday life in northern countries. They’re installed at home, at work or even at some bus stops(link in German). Daylight lamps dispel low moods because they make you produce more happy hormones and fewer sleep hormones. Around seven out of ten sufferers claim that a daylight lamp has improved symptoms. And, according to studies, the effects are comparable to treatment with antidepressants.
Now the trend has made it further south – at online retailer Galaxus the demand for daylight lamps has increased by 40 per cent. So far this year, almost three times as many light therapy devices have been shipped to customers compared to 2019. «I assume the demand will continue to increase significantly,» says Julia Kaltenecker, who’s responsible for the light therapy range at Galaxus.
Experts recommend lamps with a light intensity of at least 10,000 lux. If you have winter depression, Swiss health insurance companies will cover the cost of such devices. In Germany, however, daylight lamps aren’t subsidised. A typical light therapy session lasts 30 minutes to two hours, ideally in the morning. You shouldn’t look directly into the light as this can strain your eyes.
Mate, pass me the lamp
Two groups are primarily responsible for the increase in demand: young people and women. Every third light therapy lamp ordered from Galaxus now goes to someone under the age of 35. Six years ago, this age group only accounted for a quarter of demand.
«In the past, manufacturers’ advertising was mainly aimed at older people, for example with advertisements in pharmacy magazines,» Julia explains. «Nowadays the lamps are being advertised a lot on social media.» They’re also more popular amongst young people because they’ve become cheaper and brands are paying more attention to the design. «The lights are increasingly being used as desk lamps in home office set-ups.»
Light therapy lamps are also becoming more and more popular with women. While orders were still evenly balanced between the genders in 2019, men are now responsible for 44 out of 100 purchases, while women account for 56. According to Julia, this is also due to targeted advertising and design.
Pass me the pills
Demand for vitamins and food supplements has risen even more sharply in recent months and years. Galaxus currently sells more than thirty times as many pills and powders as it did in 2019 – with a strong upward trend. «Food supplements are doing extremely well in retail,» says Martina Tatavitto, the person in charge of this category at Galaxus. She goes on to explain that the health trend’s particularly advantageous to Galaxus – the main reason being the very broad product range it’s been offering for years. This includes both well-known and specialist brands.
Vitamin D, vitamin C and zinc are particularly popular these days. Here too, demand is highest at the end of the year, although the high growth in sales has had more impact than the seasonal trend.
Again, young people and women are the main contributors. One in four people who buy vitamins and supplements at Galaxus are now between 25 and 34 years old, compared to one in five in 2019. Meanwhile, the total number of female customers has risen from a third to half.
Martina expects demand for vitamins and supplements to continue on an upward journey: «Health and fitness are much more important in our society today than they used to be,» she explains.
How do you deal with the winter blues? Do you have a daylight lamp at home? Are you reaching for vitamin C, vitamin D or zinc this time of year? Share your thoughts in the comments section!
Alex Hämmerli
Senior Public Relations Manager
Alex.Haemmerli@digitecgalaxus.chAt Digitec and Galaxus, I’m in charge of communication with journalists and bloggers. Good stories are my passion – I am always up to date.