Lisa Warnock (Headshot credit: Glow Interior Designs)
The way we see the world changes with age. Many seniors experience a decrease in contrast sensitivity, making it difficult to distinguish between objects, especially in low-light conditions. This can create significant challenges such as difficulty navigating stairs safely, reading menus or medication labels, recognizing faces, or driving at night, all of which can impact independence and quality of life.
Additionally, conditions like cataracts cause cloudiness in the lens, reducing clarity, while macular degeneration diminishes central vision, making detailed tasks more difficult. In addition, all of us experience yellowing lenses as we age.
Thoughtful and intentional lighting design—including lighting that enhances contrast, softens glare, and reduces shadows—is an essential tool not just for improving visibility but for creating a sense of independence, safety, and comfort in the daily life for residents.
Layered lighting for comfort, functionality
A layered approach to lighting, which combines ambient, task, and accent lighting, can transform a room into a more comfortable and functional space. Task lighting, for example, allows seniors to focus on specific activities such as reading, cooking, or working on hobbies, while reducing eye strain.
Using diffused or indirect lighting reduces glare and softens the light, creating a more soothing and comfortable environment. Additionally, smart lighting solutions offer personalized control, allowing individuals to adjust light intensity and color temperature based on their needs at any given moment.
Lighting for social connection
Lighting design also contributes to the overall aesthetic of a space, promoting a positive emotional atmosphere. A well-lit room, achieved through a combination of natural light, layered lighting (ambient, task, and accent lighting), and evenly distributed illumination, can feel inviting and uplifting, encouraging social interaction, relaxation, and creativity.
Strategically placed fixtures help seniors recognize facial expressions and body language more easily, which is essential for meaningful communication. Soft, diffused lighting can reduce glare, while adjustable options, such as dimmable lights, allow for customization to suit different activities like group conversations, games, or shared meals.
Additionally, ensuring even illumination to reduce shadows, enhancing contrast to make objects and faces more distinguishable, and incorporating warm color temperatures that create a cozy, natural feel can make seniors feel more at ease in social settings. Motion-activated or easy-to-control lighting also promotes independence, allowing seniors to move confidently between spaces to join social activities.
Power of tunable lighting
Lighting is not just about illumination anymore; it’s also about optimizing circadian biology. From the moment we wake up to when we fall asleep, our circadian rhythms are driven by the color and intensity of natural light.
The body’s hormones respond to cooler, bluish light in the morning to promote alertness and daytime activity, and warmer, softer light in the evening to signal relaxation and sleep time.
Tunable lighting is a natural fit for residents who don’t get to spend much time outdoors. These systems mimic the sun’s natural color temperature and intensity throughout the day inside a building.
For seniors with cognitive impairments, sleep disturbances, or those prone to sundowning, adjusting the lighting to support their natural biological rhythms can help regulate sleep/wake cycles, reduce agitation, and improve overall well-being.
Staff health and well-being
Tunable lighting can also enhance the work environment for staff in senior living communities, particularly those working night shifts. The International Agency for Research on Cancer has classified night shift work as a probable carcinogen (Group 2A), suggesting that there is some evidence that night-shift work could affect the risk of cancer, but more research is needed to say for sure. Tunable lighting can help mitigate these risks by supporting night-shift workers.
During night shifts, cooler, blue-enriched light can help promote alertness and reduce fatigue, allowing workers to remain focused and energized. As their shifts come to an end, transitioning to warmer, softer light helps ease the body’s transition back to a state of readiness for rest, improving sleep quality after their shifts.
This can reduce the long-term health risks associated with shift work and help maintain overall well-being, while also improving job satisfaction.
Enhancing quality of life through lighting
For seniors and those with low vision, the right lighting can transform the way they experience the spaces they call home, making them safer, more functional, and empowered.
Considering these strategies and guidelines, designers can enhance the quality of life for individuals with visual impairments, enabling them to live confidently, comfortably, and independently.
Lisa Warnock is principal and founder of Glow Interior Designs, LLC (Portland, Ore.) and can be reached at [email protected].
