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Blue light reduction - 'eye saver' mode on screens


Lumo

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I've read a few reports of mobile phone manufacturers making a setting whereby a user can remove the blue light from their screen. The idea being that the intense blue which makes screens look clear and bright messes with our eyes and brains by signalling that it is bright day, which can cause difficulty sleeping if used at night, and general eye strain (or even eye damage) if stared at for long periods during the day.

 

I recently got some new monitors and they have an 'eye saver' mode. I tried it and yes, the screen looks considerably more yellow/warm and a bit dimmer, it does not make the screen look good from a distance, but wow, is it easier to read text when eye saver mode is on. I find myself using it more and more during the day when I am staring at the screen for long periods, mainly for text work, and so am no too concerned if the colours are completely correct. My eyes feel more relaxed and comfortable.

 

Does anyone else use this?

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That's very interesting. I was speaking to my brother at the weekend, and it turns out he's been diagnosed with the start of a cataract in one of his eyes, which the optician said has been caused by too much time in front of a monitor.  Do you know if this setting also takes away some of that risk?

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That's a good question. Some of the publicity I read about the blue light reduction did claim blue light may be linked to cataracts. However, these reports seemed to be based on the similarity between blue light and UV light (which it seems does lead to cataracts) rather than a clear finding from blue light itself. It could well be that there is a more thorough analysis that I missed.

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If you search 'amber glasses' on Amazon you will see ones that claim to block out blue light from screens. I first heard about these from Michelle Tam, a paleo food blogger from the US, who religiously uses them in the evenings for a couple of hours before bed when she is using screens, apparently the blue light affects the melatonin in your system and prevents good sleep so the glasses help with that. I keep meaning to try them but haven't gotten around to it yet.

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I have my phone set to automatically switch to night mode between 10pm and 6am, when it changes to use colours from the warmer end of the spectrum which is supposed to be more conducive to someone just about to go to sleep.  Honestly, unless it changes while I'm actually using it, I don't even notice the difference, but if I do see it change, it is quite obvious.  I've never had a problem getting to sleep, so I can't say if it's actually made a difference to me personally, although when you do see it change, it is gentler on the eyes in the lower light conditions.

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I have pretty sensitive eyes in general, and I have the night mode on on my iPhone all the time. I don't know if it actually helps, but I much prefer it. I also tend to turn down the brightness compared to others, and on my work monitor, I have the contrast quite low as well.

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This might seem a silly question :blush2: but if you're not using your devices at night, why not just switch them off altogether?  Something I've always been curious about.

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This might seem a silly question :blush2: but if you're not using your devices at night, why not just switch them off altogether?  Something I've always been curious about.

 

I think this is for people who are using their devices at night - sitting at a computer or using a phone in bed.

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