Every March, most of the country “springs forward” with the beginning of Daylight Saving Time. March also happens to be Sleep Awareness Month, which isn’t hard to believe, considering how much we are affected by the loss of one beloved hour of sleep.
To celebrate Sleep Awareness Week, we’re trying out different tools rumored to promote better sleep, (other than our go-to method, that is.) This week, we’re hearing from Semra, Zeel Senior PR Associate, about her experience with a Himalayan salt lamp.
Semra’s Himalayan salt lamp experiment
The wellness world has been buzzing about Himalayan salt lamps and their health benefits. The hand-carved lamps supposedly cleanse the air and help energize and promote restful sleep in the room they illuminate. When the Zeel team asked that I test one out, I was happy to give it a spin. I do have a fancy collection of Himalayan salt in my kitchen, but I’ve never had any form of pink salt in my bedroom before.
While I don’t normally have trouble getting to sleep, a recent schedule change had thrown off my circadian rhythms. I missed that energized feeling after a restorative night’s rest.
Real or fake
When picking out a Himalayan salt lamp, it’s important to know how to distinguish between a real and a fake one. Hygroscopy, for example, also referred to as ‘sweating’, is one way to tell if your Himalayan salt lamp is authentic. By its molecular nature, salt attracts and holds water, and Himalayan salt makes no exception. The crystals of a real Himalayan salt lamp attract water to its surface, and when the lamp is lit up this water evaporates due to the heat.
However, if you don’t use the lamp for an extended period of time, and especially if the weather is humid, you will find pieces of shredded salt around it. While cleaning up after your lamp may be a baffling concept at first, that’s how you will know it’s the real deal.
Observations
For the first three nights, sleeping with my new lamp was an adjustment. I’m used to sleeping in the dark. And as someone who moves quite a bit in their sleep, it was hard not to wake up every time I turned to the side where the lamp sat. It simply was too bright. Aesthetically, the salt lamp did look very chic in my bedroom during the daytime.
By the fourth night, I decided to move the lamp to the floor, so it was no longer at eye level. Before I knew it, I was fast asleep. The warm pink glow was actually pretty calming. Yes, it was totally worth carrying the heavy lamp home from the office.
Did I notice any of the purification, ionization, or other health and sleep benefits? Maybe a week wasn’t enough, but I can’t say that I did. For now, I’ll stick to air purifying plants and my cat to boost my mood.