Imagine a world in black and white, how depressing – right?

We all prefer the colour version but have you considered the fact that that you actually cannot survive without colour?

Colour is light and light, as in sunlight, is essential for life on this planet. Plants and microorganisms need it for photosynthesis to make food while we need light for heat and vision. Sunlight is absorbed through our skin and is necessary in order for our bodies to produce and use certain vitamins and minerals. Colour is fundamental to our existence whether we are aware of it or not.

We are constantly exposed to colour:

 

Blue of the sky is calming

Green of the grass and trees is liberating

Brown of the earth is grounding and nurturing

And then all the beautiful colours in between that bring us joy and pleasure.

 

The use of colour as a therapy has been around for centuries. The origins of healing with colour in Western civilisation can be traced back to the mythology of Ancient Egypt and Greece and evidence of this can be found in ancient texts from India, China and Egypt.

Colour is simply light of varying wavelengths and, as such, is a form of energy used in Colour Therapy. Everything is made up of electromagnetic energy vibrating at different frequencies that correspond to sound, light and colour. The human eye can only see a very short proportion of light within the electromagnetic spectrum. Each colour has a unique frequency and different properties.

Along the spectrum

  • Red has long wavelengths and the lowest frequency
  • Green in the middle has medium wavelengths and
  • Violet has shorter wavelengths with highest frequency

The theory behind colour therapy is that different colours stimulate or inhibit the functioning of different parts of the body. Treatment with the appropriate colour could restore balance and normal functioning. Certainly the cells of the body react to light or the absence of it – light is necessary for life and the absence can affect people mentally emotionally as well as physically. We are all aware of the Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) which results in feelings of depression during winter when there is reduced exposure to light. Directly stimulating the pituitary gland and the pineal are known to cause changes in the gland function and the production of the relative hormones affecting sleep patterns, metabolic rate and mood.

Psychologists have found that colour affects our preferences, characters, behaviors and personality. Marketing and advertising companies go to great lengths to determine the effects of colour on our motivation to buy, while interior stylists use colour to create specific moods and our experience of spaces.