Color Therapy
Color therapy, also referred to as chromotherapy is one of a number of alternative therapies that have gained popularity recently. Based upon the idea that a trained therapist can use color or light to balance a person’s energy and resolve any issues related to physical, emotional, mental or spiritual challenges.
Loosely related to Ayurvedic practices that connect a specific color to each of 7 chakras, color therapy also draws from the work of Avicenna, a medical practitioner who lived between AD 970-1037 and who believed that color was an observable symptom of disease.
One of the basic concepts in color therapy is that specific colors produce specific reactions in the body, both emotional and physical. For example, blue is a color that may induce relaxation, reducing respiration and decreasing blood pressure. The idea is that the pineal gland responds to visual stimulation directing the body to change certain functions in a particular manner.
Learning how to use colors to affect change is the goal of an education in color therapy. Proponents feel that simple things, such as wearing a particular color, repainting a room, or even using color swatches for a focused meditative exercise can help bring about desired results.
There is some corroborating evidence that colors do have an effect upon appetite, emotional state and so forth. Color therapy seeks to make specific use of that fact to elicit desired changes. As one would expect there is a great deal of skepticism voiced about the practice but believers cite extensive anecdotal evidence in support of their treatments.