If you found out that the certain types of sound waves in music were going to cause you to go deaf, slowly over time, would you keep listening? Or demand the music industry try to find a different way to produce those sounds?
What if you found out that the blue light from our smartphones, computers, and other digital screens is creating a toxic mutation in our eyes that could cause blindness? Would you demand change? Well, that time is now.
We already know that blue light is messing with our sleep cycles by stealing our melatonin production, but new research from Scientific Reports claims that blue-tinted screens is causing macular degenerations. Those blue tints are physically making your eyes destroy themselves by killing off photoreceptor cells – and unlike other parts of our body that can repair and regrow – those don’t have a way to regenerate. What you see is what you get, pun intended.
Dr. Ajith Karunarathne, biochemistry professor at UT, suggests we try out blue-light filtering eyewear. For someone like me, who is a huge nerd and literally faked an eye exam as a child to be prescribed glasses because she thought they would make her look cool, this news is a dream come true.
Question: is technology required to use this blue tint when making the screens we stare at all day? Nope. Are there other colors like red, green, or orange tints that would stop our eyes from poisoning themselves? Yep.
Answer: blue light filtered glasses could just be what the doctor ordered until the tech scene changes their color choice.
Follow me on Instagram @cabettlach or my dogs if you’re more into that @colorado.bordercollies.
h/t fastcompany.com
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