There is no doubt we spend significant amounts of time fixated on screens. Either you are drooling over your friend’s latest cuisine on Instagram or watching Kevin Hart do stand-up on Netflix.
Inevitably, your eyes are sustainably exposed to blue light, which can be damaging. But what really is blue light?
The visible light spectrum comprises many colors from blue, orange, red, to green. The energy level and wavelength differ across these colors, with blue light having higher energy and shorter wavelengths compared to the remaining colors in the spectrum.
No, don’t get it wrong. It is not like blue light is thoroughly monstrous. Sun rays also have blue wavelengths too, and they help to amplify our attention (consequently enhancing our moods) during daylight hours.
Extensive exposure to blue light only becomes dangerous when it is nighttime. Such exposure to blue light can affect not only vision but also deteriorate your sleep quality.
How Blue Light Hurts your Sleep
Ever woke up in the morning and felt terribly exhausted like you just finished playing the Super Bowl? Too bad, your sleep quality is poor. Yes, blue light can cause this.
Naturally, our eyes don’t excel at blocking blue light. Upon exposure to such light, the bulk of it penetrates through our eyes arriving intensely at the back of the retina. The latter is responsible for facilitating your brain’s translation of light into images.
Consequently, blue light disrupts your circadian rhythm by blocking melatonin. This is a vital hormone that gets you drowsy and ready for that beauty sleep.
With this hormone blocked, you don’t get sleepy easily. This means you take far longer than usual to drift into sleep.
Most common sources of blue light
With the profusion of digital technology in the 21st century, the average American is besieged by electronic devices. What if I told you the regular American teen spends 7 hours every day on gadgets?
What more, many nights in a week, 9 in every 10 American adults interact with an electronic device just before bedtime. This is an obese dish of blue light, believe me.
The most common blue light sources include TV sets, tablets, gaming devices, fluorescent and LED bulbs, tablets, and yes, computer monitors.
Certainly, I know you would angrily jump off this article if I tell you never to use your beloved smartphone or computer after daytime. But you can moderate the impact of the blue light emitted by these screens.
How? With blue light blocking glasses! Yes, these glasses are fitted with special lenses that either filter the blue light emanating from your screen or blocking it off entirely. This way, the potential damages from such light are significantly downsized.
Tell you what, there are hordes of blue light blocking glasses littering the market today. To save you the stress of picking, we invested time in selecting the best glasses (in separate categories) for you.
GAMMA RAY Anti UV Glare Blue Light Blocking Computer Glasses
Generally, this is the best blue light blocking glass on our list. The GAMMA RAY Anti UV Glare is a non-polarized glass with a special anti-reflective lens. The lens comes at a width of 53 millimeters.
Girded with glare reduction capacities and UV400 protection, this glass will keep your eyes protected from drawn-out screen use affordably.