What is blue light and how to deal with it

12th February 2019

Blue light is everywhere in our world. It used to be that the only source of blue light was from the sun. Now we have brought blue light inside by way of digital screens (found on TV’s, smartphones, computers, laptops, tablets and gaming systems), electronic devices, LED and fluorescent lighting.

What is blue light?

Blue light waves are the among the shortest, highest energy wavelengths in the visible light spectrum. Because they are shorter, these “Blue”  wavelengths “flicker” and this kind of flickering creates a glare that can reduce visual contrast and affect sharpness and clarity. This can cause eye strain, physical and mental fatigue and headaches when you use your electronic devices or sit in front of a computer all day.

Numerous studies now show that exposure to blue light can cause eyestrain, fatigue, headaches and sleeplessness. Prolonged exposure to blue light may lead to macular cellular damage which can lead to loss of vision.

So how can you block blue light?

When outside there are some sunglass brands that have created lenses specifically designed to block blue light. Sundog, Serengeti and Eagle Eyes all feature blue light blocking lenses, the latter claiming to be the original blue light blocking sunglasses (developed by NASA). Because blue light is the “hazy” of the light spectrum by blocking it everything in the field of vision will appear in sharper focus. It’s also worth noting that certain lens colours like orange and red/rose are very good at blocking blue light.

For indoors, when viewing screens, we now carry some reading glasses with blue light blocking lenses (including options with zero magnification). Made by Montana you can see them in our Accessories section.