Blue Blocking Lenses and How They Protect Your Eyes

Digital devices, such as smart phones, tablets other electronics, offer many perks, making life easier. But these gadgets are also altering light spectrum exposure on the human eye, which can have a negative effect on vision.

Too much blue light radiation from screens and other sources of light can be strenuous or annoying to the eye, contributing to digital eye strain. In addition to digital devices, high blue light concentrations also come from other light sources, such as energy-efficient light bulbs, flat-screen television screens and LED lighting.

Fortunately, blue blocking lenses can help to protect eyes from this problem. Blue blockers not only give you long-term eye protection. They also provide instant visual advantages, including reduced glare and enhanced contrast. If you’re worried about your eyes being exposed to too much blue light, here’s what you should know about blue blocking lenses and how they protect your eyes.

The Problem with Too Much Blue Light 

One of the main problems of too much blue light exposure is not getting enough sleep. Blue light reduces the amount of melatonin, which is the hormone that sets the internal clock of the human body, helping people to fall asleep and awaken at the right time. When the production of melatonin is interrupted, it can be difficult to fall asleep or stay sleep. This can lead to various health issues, as well as depression.

Furthermore, an excess of blue-violet and ultraviolet bands can be damaging to the eye, besides cause the conjunctiva and cornea to become inflamed, which is painful. Even worse, it can harm the crystalline lens of the eye, leading to cataracts.

Blue light penetrates to the retina, damaging retinal cells that are sensitive to light. As a result, this can cause macular degeneration, resulting in a permanent loss of vision.

Outdoor Exposure to Blue Light

Besides getting exposure from blue light from man-made devices, consider that you receive your primary source of blue light from outdoor daylight. Keep in mind that your eyes are even exposed to UV radiation on cloudy days. In other words, your eyes are at risk to blue light exposure 365 days a year.

What’s more, you need protection from the harmful UV sun-rays that can penetrate through windows. Therefore, if you work near a window or spend a considerable amount of time driving, you can be particularly susceptible to developing visual problems.

Using Your Blue Blocking Lenses Correctly

• Wear your blue blocking lenses whenever you read or do computer work during the day.
• Three hours before you plan to go to sleep at night, put on your blue blockers, such as while watching television, reading books or using cell phones or other digital devices.
• It’s best to select amber clip-on lenses if you wear prescription eyeglasses.

Considerations and Warnings

• Even the vision of young children can be affected from too much blue light exposure. For example, kids can develop short-sightedness, a condition known as school myopia. This creates visual issues when they start school.
• As most stores and offices use fluorescent light bulbs, you can place your eyes at risk by not protecting them from blue light.
• It’s even more critical to protect your eyes from blue light after undergoing cataract surgery.
• People who have cataracts or plan to have cataract surgery need to check with their eye surgeon regarding the amount of blue light protection that their intraocular lenses will use. This is even especially crucial for people engaged in heavy computer screen use.
• Younger adults can be more at risk from blue light than seniors are. This is because changes in older eyes are more equipped to filter out large amounts of blue light. On the other hand, blue light is still a significant concern for older Americans who can develop age-related eye diseases.

To learn more about protecting your eyes, please contact us and find out about our wide range of eye care products.