Blue Light

Hi all, I read recently that blue light is very bad for your eyes. I just got a Solitaire with the blue led, and I don't want to use it if it will further damage my already bad vision. Has anyone else heard this? Are the talking about a different blue light? Thanks

All light is bad for your eyes. Blue light is particularly good for feeling happier in the winter: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seasonal_affective_disorder

Tribull, blue light like forensic blue isn't good for you to look directly at and you can get the orange glasses to remove the blue light in order to see things that fluoresce. I m not aware of it causing damage like you are questioning but your safest option is always detailed research. I've had very strong blue in the forensic blue, and was dumb enough to look at it a couple times which wasn't a nice feeling but I can still see. Didn't feel good at the time though and if you do this once you will ONLY do it once. I have another not so concentrated in my FIrst Light NV with blue led and I can't look at it on high without special glasses. As far as using it to see where you are going it's not useful at all. Only really good to be seen, get attention, or with the glasses see things Fluoresce. Also I have a First Light T TMax with red and blue. The blue is not comfortable to look at directly but why would you want to?
It will give you warning signs before it will cause problems. For someone at a distance it's not a problem depending on the brightness but still not damaging like UV is.
UV is different all together WILL cause damage depending on different factors...so again ... do your research.

FWIW our eyes naturally filter out uv from the sun... it's nature and it's how we are made so sunglasses and uv coatings really aren't necessary. Man made uv is not in the same category as the sun and not natural for us so beware in that area.

Blue light in some forms like the kind you can't actually see as far as my "opinion" goes is more dangerous than something you can see. Led cool blue, led light panels with cooler temperatures, computer screens, should be avoided if possible as the blue though you can't see it does actually travel through to the back of the eye, causing headaches, discomfort, and in prolonged exposure over a long period can cause retina damage due to the fact our eyes aren't made to filter it.

Of course this comes from my own research as well as personal experience however I suggest you look deeper into the what's how's and why's. Then you will certainly be better informed.

parametrek said:

All light is bad for your eyes. Blue light is particularly good for feeling happier in the winter: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seasonal_affective_disorder

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Guess that depends on your brain.... I like warm light all year around. Blue hasn't actually made me feel anything except I can't see anything but blue...but the cool white led panels put me in a bad mood as they aren't natural. So maybe an experiment is in process.

Blue light per se isn't that bad. The closer one gets to ultra violet light the more the possibility of damage goes up. Any normal flashlight shouldn't be a problem. If it is a real concern, just select warm white or neutral white emitters. The more blue the output of the light, the more energetic the photons are, and it is that energy that can cause damage. It isn't till one gets up to the near ultraviolet and beyond that that energy becomes strong enough to possibly cause damage. If this is a real concern with you, look to the medical flashlight arena. There is a medical standard the certifies that a light does not emit enough blue/near ultraviolet light to cause eye damage. An example I am familiar with is the Nitecore MT06MD. It is a very classy looking two AAA penlight with a Nichia 219 emitter.

A totally different concern about 'blue' light is that blue light suppresses the body's production of melanin, which is a factor in inducing sleep. When you see an app designed to cut down on blue light emitted by your device's screen, that is the desired result. You might see a recommendation that one not use cool white lights in the hours before going to sleep. The same reason. Cool white lights have a greater proportion of blue light than lights with a warmer color temperature.

In reference to your blue LED Solitaire, I would not be concerned unless you are using it extremely near to your eyes, since the Solitaire does not put out enough light to be a problem unless it is shone directly into one's eyes. Also, the blue light emitted is not close to the ultraviolet portion of the spectrum, so that also lessens any impact.

It's coming from a maglite so I'm guessing the output is low enough that it's not going to do any damage and it's definitely not for forensics. That being said I still wouldn't stare into it.

Tribull said:

It's coming from a maglite so I'm guessing the output is low enough that it's not going to do any damage and it's definitely not for forensics. That being said I still wouldn't stare into it.

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If it's normal blue and just for lighting your way, though not very useful (red or even red/green is better) there's nothing to worry about.
Which light is it may I ask, solitaire?

Yes, it's a solitaire. I got a warm white, and a blue one. The blue seems much brighter though.

In the lux range from a normal flashlight, blue light won't damage your eyes. FWIW, I asked my retinologist that same question with respect to a blue light device which is pretty bright. He said it was fine, just don't stare directly into it.

Blue light is very bad for the eyes, significantly more bad than any other color.
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This is because all visible blue light passes through the cornea and lens and directly reaches the retina. That, in turn, [/FONT]kills photo-receptor cells as the signaling molecule on the membrane dissolves (changes that resemble those of macular degeneration can be observed, which can lead to permanent vision loss). Photo-receptor cells do not regenerate in the eye. If you destroy them...they're "dead, Jim".

Such an effect does not occur with exposure to other colors (red, yellow, green or anything between R&G).

[FONT=&quot]The added blue light exposure from computer screens, TV screens and smartphones can [/FONT][FONT=&quot]increase risk of macular degeneration over time (and further, it adds [/FONT]digital eye strain[FONT=&quot]). More powerful exposure like from lasers it's extremely damaging. Of course, exposure to lasers of any color is damaging from a power level above (and also this is time-dependent), but think of blue beam exposure as x10 more damaging, because blue light has 100% penetration vs human eye.


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