There is no scientific evidence that blue light from digital devices causes damage to your eye.

Question

According to the website linked below, blue light by itself does not cause eye damage. Since the sun contains all spectrums of light (including blue), does blue light really cause damage? Or do people simply want to blame device overuse?

Comments

I am not fully education on technology systems and how screens work but I'd assume that the concentration of blue light may be harmful while a large portion of the sun's light is blocked by the atmosphere and clouds.

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Based on my research of this topic and review of your linked AAO.org article as well as many other medical professionals and eye specialists, it does appear that some people may be blaming devices on over use and lumping the actual effects of screen time and eye health under the term "damage." While this blue light exposure does cause eye strain and interferes with our sleep pattern, permanent damage does not seem to be a factual description. I can easily imagine, however, where a lot of people, especially parents of young children, might explain limiting their screen time based on a generalized idea of "damage."

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I think this is a very intresting take. I do not have much knowlege on this topic but it would make sense that these two ideas have correlation.

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The claim that "there is no scientific evidence that blue light from digital devices causes damage to your eye" I have discovered to be true, but this statement is exaggerated. After reading an article from AAO.org, it clarifies that rather than blue light causing damage to our eyes, it is simply screens in general that cause eye strain. Affects more significant to causing eye strain is lack of blinking while looking at screens and how often someone spends on electronic devices per day. A linked source from the AAO.org article, ajo.com (American Journal of Ophthalmology), backs up the argument that blue light from digital devices does not alter the symptoms of eye strains. The article mentions that the common use of blue light glasses have no different than a pair of clear lenses would. However, according to the article from AAO.org and one from Pubmed.gov, they state that blue light does have degrade sleep quality.

Answer 1

As explained by articles from UC Davis and the Harvard Medical School, blue light alone does not cause substantial damage to the eyes when it comes to macular degeneration or cause enough damage for the potential to go blind. The UC Davis article states that the largest source of blue light is actually the sun, which we are exposed to constantly on a daily basis. Both articles explain how damage to the eyes while using devices is often attributed to blue light, when in reality, damage to the eyes is far more likely to be caused by eye strain rather than the actual emitting of blue light. When we use devices, our eyes tend to not blink as much and we become focused on something close up for longer periods of time, leading to dry, strained eyes which has a greater potential to cause damage. While constant exposure to blue light can cause some damage over a very prolonged period of time that involves constant device use as stated by the UC Davis article, it is far more likely and verified that blue light will cause things such as sleep disruption.

Links to evidence:

https://health.ucdavis.edu/blog/cultivating-health/blue-light-effects-on-your-eyes-sleep-and-health/2022/08#:~:text=Constant%20exposure%20to%20blue%20light,white%20part%20of%20the%20eye

https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/will-blue-light-from-electronic-devices-increase-my-risk-of-macular-degeneration-and-blindness-2019040816365

Answer 2

This claim is true because according to American Academy of Ophthalmology the only thing that blue light could cause would be dry eyes. The real reason for why we feel that we're being affected by our devices when we are on them is because we have eye strain from looking at the devices for too long, but it does not cause long term damage. Eye straining can be caused for a few reasons when we are on our devices, one being that we are blinking less and not giving our eyes enough moisture. Another reason could be because we are hyper focusing on the screen ahead of us a solution to this problem could be that you take short breaks to focus your eyes on something else. You could also get computer eyeglasses to be able to help your eyes focus on the varying distances. 

The only real problem that blue light can cause for our bodies is that we are less likely to fall asleep. This is because it messes up the pattern that our body is used to. The sun contains blue light, so our bodies are used to it waking us up in the morning. When we are on our devices for too long at night it will convince our brains that it is still day time making it harder to fall asleep at night. 

Ultimately, there is no long term damage that can be caused by blue light because it has the same amount of blue light that is in the sun. The only real problem that can be caused is that we strain our eyes for a short time and that it can be harder to fall asleep. Both of these though can be fixed easily and they are short term problems.

Answer 3

While I thought this was so far from true, I decided to dig deeper and fact check this myself. I was very surprised when I found the information. According this article from Harvard University: health.harvard.edu, "Blue light from electronic devices is not going to increase the risk of macular degeneration or harm any other part of the eye." When I read this, I was in shock because i've been told my whole life that blue light is bad for the eyes and shouldn't be looking at screens for too long. After doing a little more reading from this article, I found more information about how blue light does affect you and your health. Blue light does have negative affects disrupting sleep and other aspects of your health circadian rhythm. So while Blue light and looking into screens for long periods of time doesn't affect your eye health, it does affect different parts of your health. 

https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/will-blue-light-from-electronic-devices-increase-my-risk-of-macular-degeneration-and-blindness-2019040816365

Author: David Ramsey, MD, PhD, MPH

Answer 4

When reading the article posted above Dr. Khurana goes into detail about how there is no real damage being done to your eyes when using blue light.  He says that when using a screen, we blink less and that can cause dryness, but to combat that all you have to do is the 20-20-20 method or use eyedrops.  He also said the only real damage it does is that it makes it harder to fall asleep if you use it a lot before bed.  To back this up I will also link an article from Harvard Health which also has the same point, that no, blue light does not damage your eyes in anyway besides making it hard to fall asleep.

Will blue light from electronic devices increase my risk of macular degeneration and blindness? - Harvard Health

Answer 5

While true it is a little extreme to claim that there is no damage being done at all, because there are multiple studies that support the opposite. 

1.) Core Claims About Blue Light Damage

• VERIFIED through:
  • Multiple peer-reviewed studies
  • Position statements from major eye health organizations
  • Absence of documented cases of eye damage from device blue light
  • Consistent with American Academy of Ophthalmology official position

 Digital Eye Strain Claims

Claim: "Eye strain does not cause lasting damage"

• VERIFIED by:
  • Clinical studies on computer vision syndrome
  • Ophthalmological research on eye fatigue
  • Reversible nature of symptoms documented in medical literature

"20-20-20 Rule" Recommendation:

• SUPPORTED by:
  • Clinical practice guidelines
  • Occupational health research
  • Professional ophthalmology organizations

3. Blue Light Blocking Glasses

Claim: "Several studies suggest blue light-blocking glasses do not improve symptoms"

• VERIFIED through:
  • Controlled clinical trials
  • Systematic reviews
  • AAO official position statements
  • Independent research studies

4. Circadian Rhythm Effects

Claims about sleep cycle impacts:

• VERIFIED through:
  • Neuroscience research on melatonin production
  • Sleep studies
  • Circadian rhythm research
  • Environmental health studies

5. Solar Exposure Claims

Claim: "More blue light exposure from sun than screens"

• VERIFIED through:
  • Spectral analysis studies
  • Environmental light measurements
  • Comparative exposure research

Answer 6

in this article it states that there is no scientific evidence that blue light from screens causes eye damage. most of the pain and discomfort comes from digital eye strain or dry eyes. Rahul Khurana MD, says that their are lost of ways to prevent this. the 20-20-20 rule and just shutting off your bed before bed can help for better sleep.