Screen time and the coronavirus

SOUTH BEND, Ind.— How much do you actually know about blue light?

For many it is an elusive term for the light that comes from your technology devices—but what does that really mean?

“The blue light we are exposed to from our digital devices is not strong enough to cause any structural damage” says Dr. Kylene Polhamhus from Boling Vision Center.

“[Blue light] can be a little bit harsh, so you know when you talk about blue light glasses all they do is help to filter out that blue wave length” says Dr. Whitney Purtzer of Focused Eye Care, “so the computer screen doesn’t feel as bright or as harsh.”

However, the large take away, "Blue light is not harmful, rather it's the light that tend to be more aggravating and king of irritating" says Dr. Purtzer.

As everyone across Michiana has been cooped up recently as we try to stop the spread of COVID-19, our smart devices are a lot more accessible.

Whether you are facetiming your friends or family members, #WFH (working from home) or E-learning on your computers, or playing more videos games and watching movies screens are all around us, emitting blue light.

The blue light itself is not harmful to the structure of our eyes, rather it is more irritating.

Think of how LED lights on cars are more irritating to look at versus the soft yellow lights.

Blue light is not a special type of light just one of the many colors across the spectrum.

No matter what devices you are using, the effect is still more of an irritant however there are several remedies to help fix the discomfort you may feel!

Some of the effects are headaches and scratchy, itchy eyes which can be remedied by using artificial tears, or simply focusing on other things.

A good rule of thumb is the 20-20-20 rule, "Every 20 minutes, take 20 second break, looking about 20 feet away" says Dr. Polhamus.

As for the blue light glasses, those are not a 100% fix however they can help to ease those feeling computer strain.