Product Details

• Directors: John Nash Ott
• Format: Full Screen, NTSC
• Language: English
• Region: All Regions
• Number of discs: 1
• Rated: G (General Audience)
• Studio: Natural Energy Works
• DVD Release Date: January 1, 2008
• Run Time: 80 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B0015I0HKO
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #104,080 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic!, March 29, 2008

By 

J. DeMeo "naturalenergyworks" (Oregon, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Exploring the Spectrum: The Effects of Natural and Artificial Light on Living Organisms (DVD)

Dr. John Ott was upsetting a lot of establishment-type dogmatic teachers and professors in the 1970s and 80s, because his work showed we all need the trace UV radiation which comes from the sun, and that it is not a danger. He showed how "mal-illumination" created illness in plants and laboratory mice, and his work suggested schoolchildren were reacting badly -- with outbreaks of lukemia and hyperactive behavior -- when confined like lab rats in those window-less fluorescent-lit cages called "schools". He stumbled upon these problems while making time-lapse films for Disney, observing that basic physiology and even sexual behavior was affected by loss of trace UV, and that life required full-spectrum light and the normal dark period of rest. The implications of this is, fluorescent lights (even the cute little "compact fluorescents", which are little toxic bombs) cause cancers and childhood learning and behavior disorders. And long term exposure to non-visible radiations from fluorescent lights, computers, microwave ovens, cell phones and such, can also harm your health. This film not only details an important scientific discovery, but it is entertaining, as you get to see all kinds of plants moving and growing in speeded-up time-lapse photography. Not just the opening of flowers, but the growth and ripening of apples and bananas, the growth of a full-size pumpkin from a tiny seed shoot, and the crazy behavior of lab rats and children when exposed to low-level electromagnetic frequencies, as compared to when those frequencies are blocked. He also shows how greenhouses using uv-transmitting plastic windows have better and healthier growth than the normal ones using uv-blocking window-glass. Same with animal breeders, where the lack of UV in indoor pens led to sickness. Really quite amazing. Dr. Ott was ignored, mostly, which is unfortunate, as we continue to live away from nature, behind all sorts of sunlight and UV-blocking architecture, from windows where manufacturers boast "UV-blocking", to sunglasses which boast this, to people at risk slathering heavy-metal creams onto their skin which itself is cancer-causing, not the UV. At some point in the future, people will marvel at our superstitions about the "toxic sun".

This is the DVD version, which is a considerable improvement in quality over the older VHS. It is the same film Dr. Ott used to show at his lectures.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Possibly The Most Important Health DVD You Could Buy on Amazon, February 23, 2010

By 

T.R. Hammer - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Exploring the Spectrum: The Effects of Natural and Artificial Light on Living Organisms (DVD)

The packaging of this DVD didn't impress me and I was a bit skeptical, but the video itself sure did!

The first part of the DVD was goofy and supposed to be funny. It may have been done for Disney, and you may want to skip over it. After the band stops playing it gets very serious the rest of the way.

This isn't just a dry classroom lecture on light like some of the stuff you see on YouTube such as a professor giving a PowerPoint presentation. This is mostly video clips of many lab experiments during Dr. John Ott's career. You really must see some of his light experiments. In particular, the cellular changes due to different lighting.

I must admit my early research online into light and color left me a bit skeptical because it seemed somewhat like off-the-wall New Age ideas, but all that changed once I saw what happens to your cells. I don't know how you can argue with what you see under a microscope.

Ott notes at one point that some of his health discoveries were only discovered by time-lapse photography, and you would not be able to make the discoveries without time-lapse photography.

Many of the early video clips deal with how different flowers respond to different colors of light. This is all quite colorful and beautiful, and interesting, but somewhat irrelevant to anyone who isn't a gardener. Still, if you hang with it, he moves on to the more practical matters such as how light affects your health, and your children's health.

Case in point is the video of an African American child who is in a class lit by one type of lighting. He is sitting at the back of the class, agitated and disinterested, and seemingly with ADD. After the lighting change, he moves to the front of the class, pays attention, and raises his hand to answer a question. He is now fully engaged.

Another case has video of two mice in the same cage under one kind of lighting and two mice in another case under another kind of lighting. The mice on the left are fighting non-stop; whereas the mice on the right are not fighting at all.

Could lighting influence a child's emotions?

Of course these videos don't prove anything, but they get you thinking: "What if?" What if lighting does make a difference? What if something as simple as different lighting could help your kids? Or calm them down? Would that make their lives better? Would it make your life easier?

I believe this DVD is a great introduction to lighting, and an excellent stepping stone to inspire further research. I am now reading as many books on light, sunlight, and health as I can find, including used books. There are books out there which publish large studies about lighting in convincing fashion, not just one case. The truth is out there.

It is fascinating how some of Dr. Ott's greatest discoveries were made accidentally. He bumped into new revelations while working on something else.

Highly recommended for parents with difficult or underperforming children, sick people, anyone who lives or works under poor/questionable lighting, gardeners, and anyone who has a general interest in science, color, or light.

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Profound video about something we take for granted - light., February 12, 2010

By 

W. Chen "circusoflife" (TiERRA / EARTh / TERRAin) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Exploring the Spectrum: The Effects of Natural and Artificial Light on Living Organisms (DVD)

Just because this video was produced in the 1970s - doesn't mean the information is any less relevant today. [People read the Bible, Koran, etc... still -- those are old too!]

We come from nature (Evolution - we have a soul too though - check my profile to learn more), which means we are subject to many of the same laws that influence other animals and plants. This is clearly shown in this information packed DVD.

Light isn't just light. Seen in a rainbow - it consists of many different colors. What John Ott has done is show just how having too much or too little of various colors affects us, plants, and animals. Light energy affects our pituitary and pineal glands (Endocrine system) --> which affects our metabolism among other aspects. Video showing the effect of light energy on different cells (Chloroplast) was eye opening to say the least.

This video is a great introduction to the book - Health and Light - which expands further on the findings.

You could learn more about this topic by researching COLOR TEMPERATURE and FULL SPECTRUM BULBS. Companies like Ott Lite, Verilux, and Bluemax will show up. But even those products neglect UV rays. Check out Vita-Lite bulbs.
The simplest thing to do is AVOID and REMOVE/REPLACE all bulbs that are WARM WHITE or COOL WHITE - whether they be incandescent, compact fluorescent, halogen, or LED. Better to get DAYLIGHT - 6400/6500K with a higher CRI 80+. Other choices may be pricier / harder to find. And stop wearing sunglasses....