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XTi Science
What Makes Us Different

The Origin Story

Humans were designed to live outdoors. For thousands of years humans woke up to the sunrise and settled down after sunset. In the last 140 years, since the light bulb was invented, humans have dramatically changed their behavior. Most people spend the vast majority of their lives indoors, under artificial light. The negative impact on our health is evident all around us.

The human eye is an amazing design. With a combination of “rods”, “cones”, and specialized cells designed to drive circadian rhythm, the human eye can interpret many different types of incoming light information. These different colors allow us to see the world around us. But the eye also sends this information to several other parts of the brain that have huge impacts on our sleep, mood, energy level, and overall health!

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The retina of the eye is extremely complex and has many different types of cells. These cells include rods, cones, horizontal cells, bipolar cells, amacrine cells, and intrinsically photoactive retinal ganglion cells (ipRGCs). All of these cells together create a multi-layered signal that is relayed to the brain.

The visual cortex of the brain receives a major portion of this signal so that we can see the world around us, but...

Other parts of the brain also receive this signal from the eye. These other parts of the brain are responsible for sleep and circadian rhythm, hormone release, mood, stress, performance, heart rate, and many other areas critical for overall health.

What are chromophores? Chromophores are molecules that absorb light of particular wavelengths. The molecule, or chromoprotein, then undergoes a conformational change that results in a biochemical outcome.

The initial reaction to light occurs at the level of the retina, but the resultant electrical impulse travels through the optic nerve to the hypothalamus via the retino-hypothalamic tract (RHT).

The most important neurotransmitters in the RHT are glutamate and pituitary adenylate cyclase-activating polypeptide (PACAP).

Most of these neurons terminate in the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) of the hypothalamus. From there, electrical impulses are relayed to other areas of the hypothalamus, in addition to other parts of the brain.

XTi lighting exerts positive effects via this pathway of retinal photopigments to the brain.

Example: Rhodopsin

  • Rhodopsin(Opsin + 11-cis-retinal) &rarr Opsin + all-trans-retinal
  • To reform Rhodopsin, all-trans-retinal must be converted back to 11-cis-retinal
  • This is normally a multi-step process that occurs inside normal retinal cells
  • Specialized retinal cells called IpRGCs (Intrinsically Photosensitive Retinal Ganglion Cells) contain another photoreactive protein called Melanopsin
  • Melanopsin has the ability to act as both the excitable photopigment and as a photoisomerase. Melanopsin is therefore able to isomerize all-trans-retinal into 11-cis-retinal itself when stimulated with another photon.

The Brain

Our vision is critical to our overall health and ability to maintain a normal circadian rhythm. Light coming into the eye allows us to see the world around us, but part of that light also goes to different parts of the brain that result in other very important effects. Light has a direct impact on:

  • Sleep and normal circadian rhythm
  • Mood and behavior
  • Focus, concentration, multitasking, and performance
  • Heart rate, respiratory rate, digestion
  • Stress and anxiety

Light that enters the eye has many effects on the brain. The most well-known pathway is the one that allows us to see the world around us. But there are other cells in the retina that are more focused on our natural rhythms and overall health.

Intrinsically photoactive retinal ganglion cells (ipRGCs) are the most important of these cells. IpRGCs relay light signals to the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) via the retino-hypothalamic tract (RHT) as well as the perihabenular nucleus. These regions of the hypothalamus then pass the signals onto many other regions in the brain.

By stimulation of many different brain regions, light can positively impact:

  • Sleep duration and quality
  • Mood and behavior
  • Stress and anxiety
  • Focus, concentration, ability to multitask, efficiency, and cognitive performance
  • Physical and cognitive recovery
  • Heart rate variability, resting heart rate, resting respiratory rate
  • Hair growth
  • Natural hormone release
  • Inflammation

Pulse+

Designed Lighting

Careful research has led to XTi’s proprietary lighting combinations that result in amazing improvements in sleep quality and performance. Carefully designed light “recipes” work by using different colors of light, in specific combinations, to stimulate cells in the back of the eye. These different recipes are designed to replace the normal light stimulus from the sun that we are missing in our normal daily routine. Our goal is to maximize your overall health and performance by restoring normal circadian rhythm.

XTI’s lighting recipes are a carefully designed combination of different wavelengths of the visible light spectrum. These wavelengths are combined at different light intensities and different pulsing frequencies.

The Pulsed Alternating Wavelengths (PAWS) cause proteins in the back of the retina to change shape and trigger electrical signals. This allows us to drive more information to the brain, reinforcing natural homeostasis and better entraining circadium rhythm.

XTi’s recipes can be tailored with specific goals in mind in order to optimize your sleep, mood, energy level, and overall health!

Improved Health

Sleep & Recover – XTi’s Sleep and Recover recipe is designed to improve your overall sleep quality by increasing your time in deep sleep and REM. This can result in improved physical and cognitive recovery. This recipe may also reduce stress & anxiety, and decrease inflammation.

Performance – XTi’s Performance recipe is designed to improve physical and cognitive performance at all age ranges. We know most people already do everything they can to perform at a high level, but XTi’s Performance recipe can help you reach your goals.

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Commitment to Research

We want to help you reach your goals by offering products backed by scientific research.

In order to continue our culture of science and research, we are currently partnering with several universities and athletic teams in order to obtain data that allows us to improve our products.

Current research projects underway:

  • A sleep study with a major Mountain West university that should provide additional data on the effects of XTi lighting on sleep stages and subjective sleep quality.
  • A cognitive study with a major Mountain West university looking at the benefits of using XTi’s Performance recipe while multitasking.
  • A study with a major Big 12 university looking at subjective feedback of XTi’s Performance recipe on academic performance.
  • Ongoing physiologic data collection with NCAA athletic teams using XTi lighting.
  • Internal trials with rodents looking at the impact XTi lighting may have on stress and anxiety.
  • More to come...

We plan to continue ongoing research and data analysis, allowing us to innovate and improve. The end result is that XTi can offer products that allow you to maximize your sleep, recovery, and performance!

This statement has not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.