If you spend a great deal of your time looking at screens, and let’s be honest, most of us do, you may have already purchased or are thinking of opting for a pair of blue light glasses. These glasses can protect your eyes and help you sleep better; you might be wondering: Can you wear blue light glasses outside?
While you can wear blue light glasses outside, you probably shouldn’t. Your eyes need several variations of light waves to stay healthy, and if you are wearing blue light glasses while you work online, it’s best to give your eyes a break when outside.
In this article, we will discuss exactly what blue light is, where it comes from, how it can be detrimental to your eye and physical health, what blue light glasses do, and why you don’t need and shouldn’t wear them outside. So keep reading! We have everything you need to know right here.
What is Blue Light & Where Does it Come From?
There are quite a few misconceptions when it comes to blue light. The truth is that blue light is all around us, it comes from the sun, light bulbs, and almost every screen we use. Blue light is simply short and powerful light waves that are visible to the naked eye. Blue light has both beneficial and detrimental qualities that are important to understand.
A moderate amount of blue light can boost alertness, keep you awake, improve memory and cognitive function, and even help keep your sleep cycle on track. However, too much blue light can cause eye strain, headaches, fatigue, and even upset your sleep patterns.
Because most of us now spend between seven and sixteen hours a day looking at screens, we are experiencing too much blue light, which is where blue light glasses come in. As you can see, most blue light exposure happens inside. Wearing blue light glasses outside is virtually useless.
What Do Blue Light Glasses Do?
There is quite a debate going on right now as to whether or not blue light glasses actually reduce the amount of blue light that enters your eyes as companies say they do.
Blue light glasses are supposed to gently tint the color of the light so that you receive less actual blue light than you would without the glasses. If you spend a lot of time on screens, blue light glasses can be a great way to reduce your blue light intake.
And whether or not you believe the reports that say they don’t filter as much as marketers claim, blue light glasses are harmless, and you can wear them whenever looking at screens to hopefully lower the amount of blue light that comes into your eyes. But given the nature of these glasses, wearing them outside just to walk around is not necessary.
Can You Wear Blue Light Glasses Outside?
Here’s the thing, wearing blue light glasses outside isn’t technically bad for your eyes, but it’s not great either.
Your eyes need a variety of light waves to function properly, including blue light. While the sun does emit a low dosage of blue light, you should consider that healthy blue light. The mass amount of blue light we look at every day on screens is the problem, not the natural blue light from the sun we have always seen.
When you are working online, it is best to take breaks from the screen as frequently as possible and step outside to where there is only natural light.
Taking off your blue light glasses when you take these breaks ensures that your eyes get just the right amount of light for optimal health.
Do Blue Light Glasses Protect Against the Sun?
The other important factor to note is that blue light glasses do not protect your eyes from UV rays, so there is no real benefit to wearing them outside.
If you’re worried about the harmful UV rays emitted from the sun, it’s best to wear actual UV protection sunglasses, such as those with mirrored, polaroid, or tinted lenses.
Wearing blue light glasses outside may make you feel as though your eyes are being protected because it won’t feel as bright out, but they are not made with the same technology as UV glasses and therefore can be detrimental if you use them instead of sunglasses for long periods of time outside.
The Bottom Line
So, let’s circle back to our original question: Can you wear blue light glasses outside? While you can, you probably shouldn’t.
Our eyes need some blue light to function properly, and that given out by the sun can actually help our physical health, not harm it. Blue light glasses do not protect your eyes from UV rays, so it’s best to opt for actual polarized or mirrored sunglasses when you go outside.
Hopefully, you now have all the information you need about blue light glasses, including how they work and why you shouldn’t wear them in the sun!
