Blue Light Exposure: How I'm protecting my vision for the future.
In our world, Blue Light is literally EVERYWHERE, with the largest source being, perhaps surprisingly, our own shiny, golden Sun.
Most people are aware of the dangers of staring into Sun and its retina burning risks (with some more recent notable exceptions....no names) so why all the fuss about Blue Light?
The problem it seems, is a lot closer than the Sun and rests innocently on our desks, in our backpacks and brief cases and even on our bedside tables. It turns out the option to NOT stare at our computers, Smart Phones, Tablets and E-Readers is a-lot harder to achieve than saying no to Sun gazing.
Turns out our reliance on screen time to work, read and play is seriously damaging our eye health and I for one; being a computer based worker & e-book addict; am noticing symptoms of this damage in the form of severe and prolonged eyestrain.
What's so bad about Blue light anyway?
Given that it is a natural part of our light spectrum, what makes Blue Light so bad for our eyes?
According to All About Vision.com the problem is threefold, being;
- Blue Light penetrates all the way through to the back of the Eye Ball to the Retina which can potentially cause Macular Degeneration & eventually severe loss of the visual field.
- The nature of Blue Light can make it harder for the eye to focus, contributing to faster onset of eye strain (I can vouch for this one!).
- The third potential problem with Blue Light is its role in maintaining our circadian rhythms, with too much exposure in the evening making it significantly more difficult to fall asleep.
Reducing the Risks of Blue Light
Let's be honest, most of us really don't have the choice to turn off our computers and just walk away and a good number of us have Smart Phone addictions that need dealing with before we can stop staring at their small and inviting screens.
But there are options people, technology is gradually catching up with this issue and a few simple steps might help preserve our vision for the longer term:
Look into purchasing a Blue Light screen filter for your computer and Smart Devices
In the main, Blue Light Filters work by absorbing the Blue Light emitted by your screen before it reaches your eyes, which seems like a big TICK in the risk minimisation box!
After reading through customer reviews on Amazon I would recommend checking the ratings around the various products ease of application and reflective qualities before choosing (especially if your screen is currently anti reflective ..... some filters may change the reflective nature of your screen).
This however seems like a small price to pay to preserve eye health.
To check out purchase options on Amazon, follow the links.
Consider some Blue Light Screen Glasses
Not in the position to add a protector to your screen? Then consider some glasses designed to reduce the penetration of Blue Light. Some of these are a funky orange colour (using their colour to block the Blue range of the light spectrum), though many are now more discrete and just look like.... well, glasses.
There are also models that will fit over the top of your existing spectacles, if like me you already need glasses to read! This is the option I am going for, as they seem more versatile than purchasing a separate protector for each of my back lit screens.
Check out the purchase options via the links below:
Blue Light and the E Reader addict
I am a reading addict and a long time user of the Kindle platform. I love the option to browse and purchase books instantly, although, sometimes my wallet does not agree - especially when I am mid trilogy and hitting the buy button every four hours :)
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| Kindle Oasis - Proof I can have my reading 'cake' & eat it too |
The good news for Kindle readers, is that even with the screen light on, the device is projecting the light front to back, instead of outwards as is the case with most Smart devices and the brightness of the light is adjustable, or if you wish, optional and you can read in the old fashioned way, with a lamp instead :)
For my latest Kindle, I purchased the Oasis model (shown), just in case I dropped it in the bath (yep, it's water proof).
There are other awesome models available as well, with the 'basic' (yet still brilliant) Kindle Paperwhite still enabling all the benefits of e-reading on a screen that is not back lit.
How to reduce your exposure today
As the saying goes, the best things in life are free & there are definitely ways to reduce your eyes exposure to excessive Blue Light that do not require you to open your wallet.
One easy step to take is to adjust your computer's colour settings to remove the Blue Light from the display. On my computer it was as easy as activating the 'Night Mode' on my settings and then choosing how far towards the orange spectrum I wished to move my colour settings.
I have only just made the change and I am curious to see if I notice any reduction in eye strain after a days work (or a nights writing). I will keep you posted.
Night mode options are usually available in Smart Phones and Tablets as well & were originally introduced to reduce the impact of Blue Light on the body's circadian rhythms (i.e. so you can read in bed and still fall asleep).
It is rather an epic added bonus that this feature can also reduce eye strain and potentially, longer term retinal damage.
For more information about the impact your screen time might be having on your eyes, especially if you are concerned about any symptoms, I would recommend speaking to a qualified optometrist.
I however found, somewhat ironically, that there was an immense amount of qualified information available online.......via my Blue light back lit screen.
Hmmmm. Maybe I should talk to that optometrist after all?
* For further information on the commercial nature of any product links in this blog please read the following disclaimer.
For my latest Kindle, I purchased the Oasis model (shown), just in case I dropped it in the bath (yep, it's water proof).
There are other awesome models available as well, with the 'basic' (yet still brilliant) Kindle Paperwhite still enabling all the benefits of e-reading on a screen that is not back lit.
How to reduce your exposure today
As the saying goes, the best things in life are free & there are definitely ways to reduce your eyes exposure to excessive Blue Light that do not require you to open your wallet.
One easy step to take is to adjust your computer's colour settings to remove the Blue Light from the display. On my computer it was as easy as activating the 'Night Mode' on my settings and then choosing how far towards the orange spectrum I wished to move my colour settings.
I have only just made the change and I am curious to see if I notice any reduction in eye strain after a days work (or a nights writing). I will keep you posted.
Night mode options are usually available in Smart Phones and Tablets as well & were originally introduced to reduce the impact of Blue Light on the body's circadian rhythms (i.e. so you can read in bed and still fall asleep).
It is rather an epic added bonus that this feature can also reduce eye strain and potentially, longer term retinal damage.
For more information about the impact your screen time might be having on your eyes, especially if you are concerned about any symptoms, I would recommend speaking to a qualified optometrist.
I however found, somewhat ironically, that there was an immense amount of qualified information available online.......via my Blue light back lit screen.
Hmmmm. Maybe I should talk to that optometrist after all?
* For further information on the commercial nature of any product links in this blog please read the following disclaimer.
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