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- Blue light is just one wavelength that makes up white light. Blue light is emitted naturally by the sun and artificially by electronic devices we use every day like computers and smartphones.
- Our eyes aren't naturally built for prolonged direct exposure to blue light. This is thought to be a factor contributing to eye strain, headaches, and fatigue.
- Thankfully, there are products like specialized light bulbs and screen protectors designed to reduce blue light exposure and help alleviate the symptoms associated with this type of light.
Blue light is a tricky thing to understand. As of recent, we've been led to believe that blue light is evil. I think it's more ... misunderstood. The sun admits natural blue light - it's always been this way, so why all of a sudden are people experiencing eye strain, headaches, and fatigue from it?
This is how blue light works: The sun admits light known as white light. White light compromises various wavelengths that make up the visible spectrum (think: Roy G. Biv). An object exposed to white light absorbs all of the wavelengths (or colors of the rainbow) but the one you see. So, the sky is blue because red, orange, yellow, green, violet, and indigo are absorbed by the molecules in the atmosphere, while the color blue (or blue light) is reflected back to our eyes.
Blue light is actually important to our natural sleep cycle. It gives us energy and boosts our mood during the day, and helps our bodies know when it's time to go to sleep at night. So, what's the problem? It's not natural blue light, it's artificial blue light.
Artificial blue light is light that's admitted from electronic devices like computers, tablets, and phones. A large portion of people these days spend all day and night either staring at a computer screen or glued to their phones. The short-wave, blue light emanating from electronic screens flickers quickly and has the ability illuminate for long periods of time. Our eyes aren't naturally built for prolonged direct exposure to blue light. This is thought to be a factor contributing to eye strain, headaches, and fatigue.
Not to mention the other beast. When we use blue light electronics at night, it throws off our natural melatonin-production leaving us restless and wide awake.
What's a girl to do when she works for an online media company and constantly works with blue-light devices? Thankfully there are products like specialized light bulbs and screen protectors designed to reflect and reduce blue light exposure to help alleviate eye strain.
Here are seven ways to help protect your eyes from daily blue light exposure:
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