What are Blue Light Blocker lenses? Before we get into that let’s first understand what Blue Light is. Part of the spectrum of wavelengths that is light is UV(ultraviolet) light and blue light. UV light spans from 10nm to 400nm that causes a lot of damaging due to the effect of ageing that UV light causes.. Slightly longer light wavelength is Blue Light which is from 450 to 490 nm which is causes separate and similar damage to the eye.
Now what about Blue light. Sunlight is made of red. Orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo and violet light. When all these colors are combined they come together they become the white light that we see. Not all colors of light have the same effect on your eyes. Blue light which is good for you during daylight because it boosts attention ,reaction times and mood affects the eyes and body negatively at night. With all the computers, cell phones, tablets and televisions increasing our exposure to UV radiation at night, your eyes run into issues at night. At night light can cause problems for the body’s biological clock(circadian rhythm). This causes problems for people trying to sleep. Worse than not sleeping well, research shows that it may contribute to the causation of cancer, diabetes, heart disease and obesity.
Dr. Charles Czeisler of Harvard Medical School in 1981 that daylight keeps a person’s internal clock aligned with the environment. Light at night, especially blue wavelengths, seem to be most effective at affecting you’re your circadian rhythm. The tremendous increase in the use of electronic devices(smart phones, I Pads, computers) and energy efficient lighting is increasing our exposure to blue light especially at night.
Exposure to light suppresses the secretion of melatonin, a hormone that influences circadian rhythms. Even dim light can interfere with a person's circadian rhythm and melatonin secretion. A mere eight lux—a level of brightness exceeded by most table lamps and about twice that of a night light—has an effect, notes Stephen Lockley, a Harvard sleep researcher. Light at night is part of the reason so many people don't get enough sleep, says Lockley, and researchers have linked short sleep to increased risk for depression, as well as diabetes and cardiovascular problems.
Everyone has slightly different circadian rhythms, but the average length is 24 and one-quarter hours. The circadian rhythm of people who stay up late is slightly longer, while the rhythms of early birds fall short of 24 hours.
A Harvard study shed a little bit of light on the possible connection to diabetes and possibly obesity. The researchers put 10 people on a schedule that gradually shifted the timing of their circadian rhythms. Their blood sugar levels increased, throwing them into a prediabetic state, and levels of leptin, a hormone that leaves people feeling full after a meal, went down.
While light of any kind can suppress the secretion of melatonin, blue light at night does so more powerfully. Harvard researchers and their colleagues conducted an experiment comparing the effects of 6.5 hours of exposure to blue light to exposure to green light of comparable brightness. The 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).
In another study of blue light, researchers at the University of Toronto compared the melatonin levels of people exposed to bright indoor light who were wearing blue-light–blocking goggles to people exposed to regular dim light without wearing goggles. The fact that the levels of the hormone were about the same in the two groups strengthens the hypothesis that blue light is a potent suppressor of melatonin. It also suggests that shift workers and night owls could perhaps protect themselves if they wore eyewear that blocks blue light. Inexpensive sunglasses with orange-tinted lenses block blue light, but they also block other colors, so they're not suitable for use indoors at night.
LED blue light exposure
If blue light does have adverse health effects, then environmental concerns, and the quest for energy-efficient lighting, could be at odds with personal health. Those curlicue compact fluorescent lightbulbs and LED lights are much more energy-efficient than the old-fashioned incandescent lightbulbs we grew up with. But they also tend to produce more blue light.
The physics of fluorescent lights can't be changed, but coatings inside the bulbs can be so they produce a warmer, less blue light. LED lights are more efficient than fluorescent lights, but they also produce a fair amount of light in the blue spectrum.
In addition to natural sunlight, there are many man-made, indoor sources of blue light which include fluorescent and energy-efficient LED lighting. Most notably, LED light bulbs, computer display screens, electronic notebooks, and smartphones emit significant amounts of HEV light. The amount of blue light that these devices emit is only a fraction of that emitted by the sun. However, the number of time people spend indoors radiated by unbalanced, energy-efficient light or using these devices within close proximity to the user’s face, have many health care professionals concerned about possible long-term effects of blue light, especially on eye health.
Blue light has a short wavelength, which means that it is high-energy and can damage the delicate tissues of the eye. It can also pass through the eye to the retina, the collection of neurons that converts light into the signals that are the foundation of sight.
Different colors of light have different wavelengths and energy. Red for example has long wavelengths and low energy. Blue light has shorter wavelengths and more energy. Blue light can expose eyes to a higher amount of wavelength from this blue end of the light spectrum.
Almost all visible blue light passes through the cornea and lenses and reach the retina. This blue light and affects vision and might prematurely age the eyes. This effect on the eyes can cause:
The fact that blue light penetrates all the way to the retina of the eye is important because research has shown that too much exposure to blue light, especially from LED lights, can damage light-sensitive cells in the retina.
This causes changes that resemble those of macular degeneration which can lead to permanent vision loss. This is a serious problem with LED lights.
In summation — be mindful that daily LED light exposure and/or staring at your television, computer, tablet, or phone before you go to bed is having a negative impact on your eye health and a good night’s rest. Also blue light can cause permanent damage to the retina in terms of macular degeneration and the effecting of blue light can cause the fatigue that people for people that use electronic devices.
Medically, the process for reducing all these issues is the wearing of blue light blocking lenses. People that work on computers all day and students should always wear blue blocking lenses.
Take a look at lens upgrades available on most lenses
Most Popular Option
Anti-reflective Coating
Anti-reflective coating blocks reflections and glare. Think of the car headlights behind you when you're looking at a computer screen. The glare and reflection will vanish with this upgrade.
The Best of Both Worlds
Photochromic Lenses
Photochromic lenses change from clear to dark when you come in contact with sunlight or any UV light source.
Reduce Eye Strain
Blue Light Lenses
Staring at a screen all day can strain your eyes, which leads to headaches or fatigue. Block blue light with our blue light coating.
Tints aren't just for fashion
Tinted Lenses
Blue, yellow, pink, oh my! Lenses can come in a variety of fashionable colors. While they are not a replacement for polarized lenses, tinted lenses can have benefits depending on your color choice.
