Finding compact fluorescent light bulbs that can be tolerated by multiple sclerosis victims.

Finding compact fluorescent light bulbs that can be tolerated by multiple sclerosis victims.

(c) 2003, Mike Barkley
Those of you familiar with multiple sclerosis newsgroups and websites, as well as some of you from personal experience know that for some multiple sclerosis victims, fluorescent lights can cause great discomfort. There are anecdotes of MS victims walking into Wal-Mart, for instance, and falling over from loss of equilibrium. Fluorescents always bothered my wife but she didn't know until our research following her diagnosis that there was some sort of medical cause. The right combination of fluorescents will make her pass out.

Anyway, with the California energy crisis in 2001 I not only needed to replace 105 light bulbs (mostly exterior bug lights, which aren't listed here) with compact fluorescents, I had to find bulbs for our apartment that she could tolerate. This listing is a listing of those bulbs that either passed or failed "The Jeanne Test":

Passed:

In general, and with very few exceptions, compact fluorescents that Jeanne can tolerate have a second, outer encompasing or diffusing or decorative translucent cover (but some bulbs with such a cover still failed) :

General Electric soft white 3-way FLE290BX/D3/827
General Electric 15 watt Super Long Life FLE15TBX/L/TRAY (barely tolerated)
Lights of America 13 watt "The Deco Bulb", Soft White Compact Fluorescent Bulb - this is the bulb we've used the most.
Lights of America 13 watt "The Bulb" Soft White Compact Fluorescent Bulb
Philips Marathon 15 watt Flood SLS/R30 15 LLG
Sylvania (Osram) 13 watt CF EL - Dulux El Globe - but beware, despite the "Life 10000 Hours" on the package, 3 of the 4 we bought lasted less than 2 years with intermittent use in an "open" fixture.

Failed:

Commercial Electric 20 watt Spiral Lamp 738-703
FEIT Electric 9 watt BPMLPL9
FEIT Electric 5 watt BPMLPL5
Panasonic 14 watt Gen IV Light Capsule EFA14E28
Philips Marathon 12 watt BC-EL/A 12 LLG
Philips Marathon 15 watt BC-SLS 15 LLG
Sylvania (Osram) 13 watt Dulux EL Bullet X01347
TCP ( Technical Consumer Products ) 20 watt Goodlamp #69620
Westinghouse 15 watt compact fluorescent globe 15CFL/G/E/27 Item #37380

There are others I did not try because I did not find them at the time, or I did not need the configuration they offered at that moment. For those of you not "electrically inclined", some of these bulbs will not fit your fixtures because of the wide "hip" on them - in general for those you can use a "socket extender" which you may find for, oh, 69 cents at your local hardware store. I found all these bulbs at Home Depot, Orchard Hardware, Wal-Mart, and http://www.topbulb.com .

Since putting up this page I have also heard from another vendor, "Service Lighting" which asserts that "we have over 4,000 light bulbs and accessories online. We actually have the biggest and most complete light bulb catalog available on the internet." I have no history with them but since I like healthy competition, I've included this link for you. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Return to Sentinel Home.

--Mike Barkley, 161 N. Sheridan Ave. #1, Manteca, CA 95336 (H) 209/823-4817
mjbarkl@inreach.com
No more excuses! - Cure Multiple Sclerosis now!