September 17, 2018 - Blue Light
Hey folks, it’s Dr. Sam – good morning! I’m on a great walk today and thought I’d bring you along.
I want to talk about the science of blue light – I probably get four or five questions a day about how blue light affects our eye health and our overall wellness. So I want to explain it to you.
There are two kinds of blue light:
- Blue-turquoise light actually improves our vision because it increases our contrast sensitivity, visual acuity, and peripheral vision. It even relaxes our nervous system. and there’s the blue turquoise light which actually improves our vision and increases our contrast sensitivity or visual acuity or peripheral vision it even relaxes our nervous system.
- Blue-violet light, on the other hand, is the damaging light. This light comes from the sun and all of our digital devices. Studies have found that people who are exposed to high levels of blue-violet light are at increased risk for oxidative stress and retinal damage, which can eventually result in retinal cellular death and it may be one of contributing factors to the development of macular degeneration.
The answer to the damaging blue-violet light is blue-blocking lenses. I’m in the process of researching the different blue-light blocking companies, so, unfortunately, do not have one to recommend to you right now. But be sure to try the glasses on and make sure they don’t make things too dark for you, especially if you have early-stage cataracts, glaucoma, or macular degeneration. So generally speaking, a yellowish or orangeish tint will be better than a dark-blue tint. This will give you more peripheral vision, as many of my patients who have come into my office probably already know.
I would also recommend the looking at your diet. Our eyes actually protect us from these damaging lights naturally, but it cannot do so properly without the proper nutrients and carotenoids. So in particular, you want to boost your consumption of carotenoids like lutein and zeaxanthin with a rainbow diet that includes foods like green leafy vegetables, cruciferous vegetables, red and orange bell peppers, pumpkin, and squash. And of course, plenty of healthful fats and oils are important. In addition, probiotics and prebiotics are essential for nutrient absorption and our immune system. So these are all ways to create a “blue-blocking” diet.
That’s my message for today – I want to thank you so much for tuning in. And until next time take good care.