Effects of Blue Light on Eyes and Tips to Reduce Exposure

People have been talking about blue light and its impact on eye health for many years now. But the problem just keeps getting bigger. As we spend more and more time at our screens, many of us are rightly asking questions about how that impacts our eyes. Most of these questions have to do with blue light and its connection to digital eye strain symptoms.

While current studies haven’t found blue light to be retinotoxic to the eye, the long-term effects of blue light exposure are currently unknown. But the short-term effects are evident, as many people report symptoms of eye strain, fatigue, headaches, dry eyes, and more when working long periods in front of a screen. So, in the meantime, until we know more, it’s a great idea to think about ways to mitigate the clear effects of blue light on eyes. Before we discuss some of those strategies, let’s talk a little bit about how blue light might impact our vision and overall health in the short term.

Blue Light and Sleep Disruption

One of the biggest things many people worry about when it comes to blue light is the effects of blue light on sleep. And, this is for good reason, because, as Harvard Health discusses, there is a clear negative connection between blue light and melatonin production. They ran a study where they compared the impact of blue and green light exposure on melatonin production, and found that blue light suppressed melatonin for about twice as long as the green light and shifted circadian rhythms by twice as much (3 hours vs. 1.5 hours). This means that, while the long-term effects of blue light on vision are unknown, it is clear that the negative connection between blue light and circadian rhythm is strong. This is reason enough to reduce blue light exposure at least two to three hours before bed.

How Does Blue Light Damage Eyes?

Beyond damaging your sleep cycle, you may still be wondering about the negative effects of blue light on eyes. Well, perhaps the good news is that there is currently no scientific evidence that blue light physically damages your eyes, according to the American Academy of Ophthalmology. However, we all know that staring at a screen for too long can cause symptoms of digital eye strain.

While eye strain from digital devices won’t damage your eyes in the long run, it will still cause discomfort. Symptoms of digital eye strain include squinting, headaches, dry eye, neck and shoulder pain, and even double vision. Screen time eye strain is caused by excessive time spent looking at laptops, smartphones, and TVs, often without the correct posture. Luckily, there is a lot you can do to mitigate screen exposure eye fatigue and reduce screen eye strain naturally.

Tips to Reduce Blue Light Exposure

1. Take a Break

This isn’t a popular one, but it’s necessary. We all depend on our smartphones for socializing, work, and entertainment. It’s normal to be addicted to checking your phone for one of these things, or a million other excuses. However, to protect your eyes from constant blue light exposure, you need to take breaks.

Try turning off your phone once you get to work. You can likely access your email from the computer; you don’t need to also be checking a second device. Make sure everyone important, like your kids’ school, has your office phone number. This stops you from using that as an excuse to leave your phone on. You could also try turning it off once you come home from work or when dinner’s over. This is especially beneficial at night when blue light can affect your circadian rhythm and make it harder to fall asleep. There are also a number of apps out there that can block things like games, social media, and news apps during certain times of the day to help you reduce your overall screentime. All of these are great ideas to reduce the negative effects of blue light on eyes.

2. Try Vision Training Exercises

Many jobs require staring at your computer screen for long periods of time. If that includes your job, it’s a good idea to learn some eye exercises that you can do from your office chair.

Here’s an easy one:  Start by looking far to the left (without moving your head) and then far to the right. Look upwards and downwards, holding each stretch for 10 seconds. It’s important to flex your range of eye motion because your eyes are often staring straight ahead when you’re looking at a screen. Eye muscles need to be stretched like any other muscle in the body.

Another common exercise is the 20-20-20 rule. For every 20 minutes of computer work, take 20 seconds to stare at something 20 feet away. This will relax the eye muscles that have been contracting for you to focus on the screen. Holding it for 10 seconds will not take any precious time away from your daily tasks. However, it will make a huge difference for your eyes by stretching them and giving them regular breaks from the blue light.

3. Focus on Blinking

Most people don’t notice their reduction in blinking when they’re working on the computer or scrolling through their smartphones. We become so absorbed in what we’re reading or watching that our blinks become fewer and farther between. Blinking is crucial to keep your eyes lubricated and relaxed, especially when being exposed to blue light. This is a huge reason that many cases of digital eye strain come with dry eye.

One way to remind yourself to blink more while at work is to place a sticky note along the side of your monitor. Or, set a timer on your phone to interrupt you in 20 minutes that reminds you to blink. It seems like common sense, but it’s easy to forget to blink when you’re busy working on a computer.

4. Use Protective Eyewear

One popular way to reduce digital eye strain caused by blue light is to purchase blue-light-blocking lenses. Or, if you wear prescription lenses, you can have your eye doctor add this filter to your next set of frames. These will often both reduce the amount of blue light getting through your glasses and help with any glare that may also be contributing to digital eye strain.  Glare causes our eyes to reabsorb light that we’ve already seen, commonly noticed in car mirrors and on regular glasses. Blue light-filtered glasses are made with an anti-glare coating that reduces stress on your eye muscles.

While some blue light still gets through the filtered lens, the majority is blocked. The results of wearing these types of glasses long-term are astounding. A recent literature survey in the peer-reviewed journal Chronobiology International found nearly 30 studies that codify blue light glasses’ effectiveness against insomnia and delayed sleep. If you’re someone who is less inclined to take breaks from screen time, you might want to look into protective eyewear. This is one of the best ways to reduce the adverse effects of too much blue light exposure.

5. Use Protective Screens

Maybe you don’t wear glasses but prefer contact lenses, or don’t require any eyewear at all. You can still reduce blue light exposure on your screens by using a protective screen film. These are transparent screen protectors that not only save your screen from physical damage, but also block the blue light from entering your eyes. You can purchase these screens for smartphones, tablets, and computer monitors.

Many smartphones now also have a built-in blue light filter feature. You can simply go to your phone’s settings and select the display and brightness button. Turn on “night shift” or “night light,” depending on your device. On some phones, it’s even simpler on the display page of your settings app. This is a great way to still access your devices while reducing your blue light exposure.

There are also multiple apps you can download that will apply a blue light filter to your smartphone. Here are a few of the most common apps:

• f.lux
• SunsetScreen
• Iris

Breaking Away from Blue Light

While the jury is still out on how blue light affects vision in the long run, it’s clear that it is hurting our health in the short run by making it more difficult to sleep. If you use your smartphone regularly, protect your health by reducing the impact of blue light. If you have a tablet that you let your children use, go the extra mile to block blue light emissions. Use a screen protector, an app, or the settings on your phone to eliminate any effects of blue light exposure. Hopefully, you’ll reduce symptoms of both digital eye strain and insomnia in no time.