You’ve likely heard about how blue light can harm your eyes and sleep quality. You may have even purchased a pair of blue light glasses. Recently, skin care products have also hit the shelves, claiming to protect our skin from the harmful effects of blue light. But are they necessary?
The main source of blue light is sunlight, but digital screens including cellphones, computers, laptops, and TVs are all additional sources of blue light, according to board-certified dermatologist Thomas Griffin, Jr. MD.
Research on the subject is limited, but experts agree that the lower energy and longer wavelength in blue light can penetrate deeper into the skin than ultraviolet (UV) radiation, which can cause skin cancer.
While blue light from the sun can negatively impact our skin, there’s no consensus on whether digital screens emit enough blue light to be harmful.
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While more research needs to be done on blue light emitted from digital screens, experts say we should protect our skin from the blue light that comes from sun exposure.
According to Griffin, traditional chemical sunscreens don’t often provide blue light protection. Physical sunscreens, on the other hand, specifically those that contain zinc oxide, do provide protection against blue light as well as increased protection against UVA and UVB light compared to chemical sunscreens.
