How Cincinnati Children’s turned light into medicine—and medicine into a movement

Cincinnati Children’s has long pushed the boundaries of what healthcare can achieve—not only by treating illness, but also advancing the science of how children grow and thrive. In 2024, that mission led researchers to an unexpected frontier: light.

Building on decades of scientific leadership, its researchers developed a new lighting technology called Spectral Light for their neonatal intensive care unit. Created to mimic the developmental benefits of natural sunlight, Spectral Light was designed to answer a deeply human question: How can we help premature babies experience the developmental benefits of their first sunrise?

From the NICU to the world: How Cincinnati Children’s turned light into medicine—and medicine into a movement

The result was a breakthrough lighting system that replicates the full spectrum of natural sunlight, including violet and indigo wavelengths proven to support eye development, circadian rhythm regulation and neurological health. For infants who spend critical early weeks indoors, light became a form of medicine—supporting physical, emotional and cognitive development at life’s most fragile moment.

But the implications quickly extended far beyond the NICU. If biologically aligned light could help premature babies thrive, what could it do for the millions of children—and adults—who spend most of their lives indoors?

Recognizing Spectral Light’s potential to transform everyday environments, Cincinnati Children’s made a bold decision: to move beyond traditional care delivery and build a scalable venture rooted in preventive and environmental health. To help get there, Cincinnati Children’s partnered with McKinsey’s business-building and technology teams.

“Our shared vision was to turn scientific brilliance developed at Cincinnati Children’s into everyday wellness—to make something born in a NICU available in every classroom and every home,” says Oliver Rhine, senior vice president and chief strategy officer at Cincinnati Children's.

Spectral Light was built at the intersection of human biology, technology and entrepreneurship. A joint leadership team brought together clinicians, scientists, engineers, designers and operators—combining medical rigor with venture discipline.

From the NICU to the world: How Cincinnati Children’s turned light into medicine—and medicine into a movement

Designed for real-world use, hospitals, schools and childcare centers can control lighting through a tablet, a wall switch or an online dashboard. Teachers can set “Morning Boost” or “Nap Time” with a tap; nurses can adjust NICU lighting remotely, even during internet outages. Lights run on secure, open protocols compatible with building management systems, ensuring privacy and compliance with standards.

The system not only replicates the full wavelength distribution of sunlight, it also continuously improves through cloud-based biological insights, refining intelligent “light recipes” based on emerging biological research.

Spectral Light’s journey began where it mattered most—in the NICU. From there, pilots expanded to Cincinnati Children’s own childcare center and then to one of the largest childcare providers in the United States.

In classrooms, where they could study how biologically aligned light affected children’s mood and focus, teachers observed calmer environments, smoother transitions between activities and children more attuned to the natural rhythm of the day.

“At first, I didn’t think lighting could make such a big difference,” said one daycare teacher. “But we started seeing calmer mornings and easier transitions after naps. The kids seem more in tune with the day — more alert when it’s time to play and more relaxed when it’s time to rest.”

Today, Spectral Light has evolved from a hospital innovation for its most vulnerable patients into a scalable wellness platform, positioned to reach more than 30 million people within five years. With an aspirational goal of contributing to a 50 percent reduction in global childhood myopia by 2050, the technology represents a new model for healthcare—one that extends impact from treatment into prevention, and from hospitals into everyday life.

“Light is medicine in its simplest form,” says Dr. James Greenberg, co-director of the Perinatal Institute and director of Neonatology at Cincinnati Children's. “Spectral Light helps us bring that medicine to the places we live, learn, and heal.”