What is blue light and should you protect yourself from it?
Are you one of those people who spends most of the day in front of a screen, monitor or television? In that case, it’s good to inform yourself on how artificial blue light – emitted by digital devices – affects your body. We’ll also tell you all about how to reduce your exposure to excessive blue light.
The good things about blue light
Natural sunlight contains many different colours. Each colour has its own wavelength, energy and effect. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing and each colour performs a completely natural function.
Blue light’s main purpose is to wake us up in the morning. It helps our body distinguish between day and night, keeps us alert and fresh during the day and as it dissipates in the evening, makes us feel sleepy at bedtime. In short, it helps our biological clock – the circadian rhythm – operate smoothly. It’s even used as a treatment for seasonal depression as it raises our productivity, concentration and energy levels.
When does blue light become harmful?
Being exposed to blue light when the day has come to an end, is where it all starts going wrong. Nowadays, most digital devices also emit a large amount of blue light. So, you can already guess what happens… Our screens are bombarding us with excessive blue light when the sun has already gone down!
As a result, artificial blue light affects and inhibits the production of melatonin – our sleep hormone.
This causes our body to think that it needs to remain active and alert. We feel far less sleepy and when we do fall asleep, we tend to sleep poorly. In other words, our biological rhythm is completely disrupted. This leads to fatigue, loss of energy and focus, as well as other issues.
How to reduce your exposure to harmful blue light?
Here are a few tips you can follow:
- Finish the day by reading a book and not by watching TV.
- Put your phone, tablet or computer away at least 2 hours before going to bed.
- Figure out beneficial lighting conditions in your home – think about the colour of your light bulbs and your LED lighting.
Are you looking for additional protection?
Take a look at TopVue Blue Blocker lenses – miracle lenses with a blue light-blocking filter!
TopVue Blue Blocker Contact Lenses
TopVue Blue Blocker are daily contact lenses with a blue light-blocking filter.
These are the benefits of a blue light-blocking filter:
- your eyes will stay focused
- it decreases digital eye fatigue
- it prevents dry eye syndrome
- it prevents headaches
- it helps you fall asleep more easily
Are you interested? Find out more about these lenses: