AMHERST, N.S. – There is much more than books at the Cumberland Regional Library’s seven branches.
Besides an extensive collection of books, DVDs and audiobooks – as well as community access to computers – the library is attracting people battling things like seasonal affective disorder and wanting to test their home for radon.
“These are just a few of the services we offer as a library,” chief librarian Denise Corey said. “When people think of the library they instantly think books, but there’s much more for people at the library than books and these devices are just some of the things we can offer on loan to people who hold a library card.”
Sometimes called the winter blues, season affective disorder, or SAD, is a type of depression related to the changing seasons and less sunlight in the fall and winter months than there would be in the summer.
Corey said the Pictou-Antigonish Regionals Library got a grant to pick up some of the lamps and they were able to include the Cumberland Public Libraries, which received two of the devices.
“We’re loaning them out for two weeks at a time,” Corey said. “There are instructions inside, but it is encouraged if you have any concerns you should talk to your physician before using it, especially if you are on any medication that makes you light sensitive.”
Corey said the lamps are designed to help people through the darker days of winter. Through light therapy, people sit in front of a special light box so they are exposed to bright light within the first hour of waking up each day.
Light therapy mimics natural sunlight and appears to cause a change in brain chemicals linked to mood.
With the support of the Lung Association of Nova Scotia, the library has radon detector devices. The devices are used to give an indication of radon levels in the home.
“There are already over 90 radon detector devices circulating in libraries across the province,” said Robert MacDonald, president & CEO of the Lung Association of Nova Scotia. “While this program was never intended to provide testing to every homeowner in Nova Scotia, we are pleased it has created more awareness about the dangers of radon gas in the home. It’s just another way we’re trying to improve lung health in our province.”
Radon is a radioactive gas that has no smell, can’t be seen, and is present in most homes. Long-term exposure to elevated levels of radon in the home, especially for smokers, increases your risk of developing lung cancer. In fact, it is responsible for approximately 16 per cent of all cases of lung cancer and the only way to know if a home has high levels of radon is to test for it.
Twitter: @ADNdarrell
