sachabballi reef May 14, 2013 Share May 14, 2013 (edited) Widely used eco-friendly LED lights may damage to your eyes, according to new Spanish research. A study carried out by Complutense University in Madrid discovered that exposure to LED lights can cause irreparable damage to the retinas of the human eye. The damage is caused by the high levels of radiation in the 'blue band' light they emit. The retina – there is one in each eye - is light-sensitive tissue that is responsible for detecting light and in turn allowing you to see. Dr. Celia Sánchez-Ramos explained that light from LEDs, or light-emitting diodes, comes from the short-wave, high-energy blue and violet end of the visible light spectrum. She said that prolonged, continuous exposure to this light may be enough to damage a person's retina. ‘This problem is going to get worse, because humans are living longer and children are using electronic devices from a young age, particularly for schoolwork,’ Sánchez-Ramos told ThinkSpain.com. Eyes are not designed to look directly at light — they are designed to see with light,’ Sánchez-Ramos said. Her comments are partly based on her 2012 study that was published in the journal Photochemistry and Photobiology. The study found that LED radiation caused significant damage to human retinal pigment epithelial cells in vitro. Some experts have called for the LED lights to have built-in filters to cut out the blue glare. This is not the first time energy-saving lights have come under scrutiny for safety reasons. Compact fluorescent light bulbs, or CFLs, have been criticized for the high levels of mercury they contain as well as the UV radiation they can emit. Sánchez-Ramos added that modern humans have their eyes open for roughly 6,000 hours a year, and are exposed to artificial light for the majority of that time. Edited May 14, 2013 by sachabballi reef Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steveoutlaw May 14, 2013 Share May 14, 2013 Yaaaay for Metal Halides! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sachabballi reef May 14, 2013 Author Share May 14, 2013 agreed Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
surf&turf May 14, 2013 Share May 14, 2013 Yaaaay for Metal Halides! +2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Origami May 14, 2013 Share May 14, 2013 This provokes more questions than I think will be answered from the one study. Maybe more studies will be forthcoming. Time to start wearing Blu-blockers in the fish room! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Origami May 14, 2013 Share May 14, 2013 The damage is caused by the high levels of radiation in the 'blue band' light they emit. Dr. Celia Sánchez-Ramos explained that light from LEDs, or light-emitting diodes, comes from the short-wave, high-energy blue and violet end of the visible light spectrum. Eyes are not designed to look directly at light — they are designed to see with light,’ Sánchez-Ramos said. Simply stated, don't stare into a bright blue light. (It really doesn't matter if it's coming from an LED or a Metal Halide. If it's emitting significant energy at the high-energy (blue/violet/UV) end of the spectrum, it can damage tissue. That's exactly how UV sterilizers work.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zygote2k May 14, 2013 Share May 14, 2013 arc and gas welders too. halides emit blue light as well. lets not forget the sun. generally speaking, you shouldn't stare at any extremely bright light source. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Der ABT May 14, 2013 Share May 14, 2013 except robs eyes...hahah Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ErikS May 14, 2013 Share May 14, 2013 Simply stated, don't stare into a bright blue light. (It really doesn't matter if it's coming from an LED or a Metal Halide. If it's emitting significant energy at the high-energy (blue/violet/UV) end of the spectrum, it can damage tissue. That's exactly how UV sterilizers work.) LOL - exactly, we needed a study for this? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
F&Fmgr May 14, 2013 Share May 14, 2013 except robs eyes...hahah "Im the funny man.... im F*&%($g FUUNNNY!!" --Rocco, Boondock Saints Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Der ABT May 15, 2013 Share May 15, 2013 haha freaking classic movie......its getting hard to read, i did an experiment and had one eye looking at blue and the other red...... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rocko918 May 15, 2013 Share May 15, 2013 might as well wear sunglasses all day and night. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davelin315 May 15, 2013 Share May 15, 2013 might as well wear sunglasses all day and night. You mean you don't do that? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fscbishop May 15, 2013 Share May 15, 2013 i am pretty sure if you stare at Halides it will blind you ten time faster Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rocko918 May 16, 2013 Share May 16, 2013 You mean you don't do that? I wear my sunglasses at night so i can so i can look at my fish tank. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sachabballi reef May 16, 2013 Author Share May 16, 2013 I wear my sunglasses at night so i can so i can look at my fish tank. Are you Corey hart? (So just dated my old a$$) Sent from my DROID RAZR using Tapatalk 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smallreef May 16, 2013 Share May 16, 2013 My momma said never stare at bright lights they'll make ya blind! Apparently, my momma is as smart, if not smarter, than this researcher, she told me this 30 years ago when we had an eclipse....and I told her it wasn't bright, she said that my eyes didn't know it was but the sun was sneaking out of the sides....she so smart! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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