Episode 119
119: Willie Duggan - A Lighting Design Expert Turned Circadian Rhythm Advocate & The Future of the Industry
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"We need to see all that in the health bubble," says Willie Duggan, third-generation lighting designer, who joins the Quantum Biology Collective podcast to illuminate the critical intersection between lighting design and human health. Duggan explains why the lighting industry's obsession with efficiency metrics has led to environments that disrupt our circadian rhythms and potentially harm our health. He shares insights from his own journey of recovery from a stroke at age 33, which sparked a passion for understanding the profound impact of our lit environments on our biology.
Today, Willie reveals how he's revolutionizing residential lighting design by incorporating circadian considerations, infrared light, and dynamic color temperature control. He discusses the challenges of educating an industry steeped in outdated paradigms and the exciting potential for collaboration between lighting professionals and health experts. Tune in to learn how Willie is building his own home as a prototype for health-optimized lighting and why he believes we're on the cusp of a paradigm shift in how we light our living spaces.
5 Key Takeaways
1. Design your home lighting with health in mind. Use dynamic white lighting that changes color temperature throughout the day, dimming and becoming warmer in the evening to support circadian rhythms.
2. Incorporate low-level lighting, like LED strips at skirting level, for evening use. This provides indirect, glare-free illumination from below rather than harsh overhead lighting.
3. Prioritize natural light by maximizing windows, especially south-facing ones. Position work areas near openable windows to get full daylight exposure when possible.
4. Be mindful of when and where you need functional task lighting versus ambient lighting. Many homes overuse bright overhead lights when softer, indirect lighting would be more appropriate and healthier.
5. Consider adding infrared light sources to your home, as this was present in incandescent bulbs but is lacking in most LED lighting. Look into emerging LED products that incorporate infrared wavelengths.
Memorable Quotes
"We need to see all of that in the health bubble, in terms of understanding it from a health perspective. It's products, but it's how they're combined. We can integrate different products in our spaces and create different circuits that we switch on and off at different times of the day."
"I think residential homes are probably the most important because we spend our time there at crucial times of the day. It's the morning, it's the evening, it's when we're getting those important cues, sunrise and sunset."
"The lighting industry and lighting research field need to be checking the papers from the health side. We need proper collaboration between design professionals approaching the same problem from different directions with different perspectives. That's where we get proper solutions."
Resources Mentioned
THE LIGHT DOCTOR: Using Light to Boost Health, Improve Sleep, and Live Longer by Dr. Martin Moore-Ede - https://amzn.to/41FhmrX
Connect with Willie
Website - willieduggan.com
Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/willie_duggan/
LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/willie-duggan-70071731/
YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/@willieduggan8
QBC Resources
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Transcript
Meredith Oke [5:06 - 5:14]: Willie Duggan, welcome to the QVC podcast. This is gonna be really fun. I'm excited to talk about lighting with you.
Willie Duggan [5:15 - 5:18]: Yeah, thanks, Meredith. Yeah, like, I'm really looking forward to it.
Meredith Oke [5:18 - 6:21]: Okay, so I. I want to get into your family history and how steeped you are in light, but I think what. To just kick us off, I want to pick up where we were, what we were just discussing before I started recording. And I was saying how, you know, the audience of this podcast and people who've, you know, been researching these types of topics, like, we've all very much wrapped our heads around the idea of making sure that we have certain types of light bulbs and certain types of light emitting objects in our home that are not disrupting our circadian rhythms. And we really understand the importance of that, the importance of making sure that it's not super bright inside when it's really dark outside. And you're saying yes. And there's another layer to the conversation which is to think about our. Our lit environment from a holistic perspective. So say more.
Willie Duggan [6:21 - 8:12]: Yeah, yeah, yeah. It's. It's not just about products, right? So products are. Are one thing, you know, and getting the right products. And I think there's a long way to go there as well, you know, but at least there's sort of products appearing, but it's how those are, you know, combined together. And that's, I suppose, in terms of lighting design, that's where I feel that there's a missing piece. As a lighting designer, we look at the whole space. We try to understand how a space works, you know, at different times of the day. So we're trying to. You're trying to design, you know, you know, let's say in typical modern spaces nowadays, like kitchen, living, dining spaces, there's numerous functions. You're trying to design for those different functions at different times of the evening. And how does the space feel at, you know, when I'm watching tv, but not using the kitchen and this type of thing. And there's lots of different light sources we can use, and we just need to. We need to build them into our spaces in a coherent way so that we can create scenes at different times of the day. And I think certainly when it comes into the quantum consideration, you know, in terms of seeing it from the health perspective, you know, I think we need to see all of that now, as I look at it as a lighting designer, we need to see all that in the health bubble, you know, in terms of understanding it from a health perspective. But it's yeah, it's products, but we're. But it's. There's lots of different products that we can. That we can integrate in our spaces in different ways, and we create different circuits that we switch on and off at different times of the day, or this can happen automatically. Like, I'm doing my own house at the moment, so I'm. I'm really. I'm in the middle of trying to create a framework on this. But, you know, there are sort of light control options as well, where we can dynamically control the lighting as the evening goes on to give us, you know, the correct biological signals at the right time. You know, so it's. It's products at a start, but I think it's how they're combined. That, that, that's. Yeah, I think that's. That's where we can really get, you know, huge value.
Meredith Oke [8:12 - 8:25]: And, you know, so when you talk about thinking not just in terms of what kind of light bulb is in this lamp, but you're talking about. Think of your home in terms of. Of the scene.
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