One of the biggest assaults against us in the modern world is artificial lighting. All modern lighting can have a biological effect, some worse then others. LED, Fluorescent, and CLF bulbs are found to have a color spectrum that is blue. Most installations have a very high Kelvin (color scale) for example - a bulb with 6500K tells our body that it is noon all day. They can also flicker which I will cover in another post.
Natural light from the sun has a spectrum of colors where the blue is always balanced with red. Before indoor lighting candles or fire was the only source of lighting at night. The progression of the disease processes have skyrocketed with artificial lighting. There have been many books written over the last 30 years warning of the negative health effects, yet industry pushes forward and has any oversight blocked.
Evening exposure from lighting, phone and tablet screens, television, street lights, etc negatively affects sleep, circadian timing, and next-morning alertness. Blue light also breaks the melanopsin/retinal linkage leading to loss of vitamin A, in turn Vitamin D, then destroying your photo-receptors.
What does all that blue light exposure really lead to?
- Skin damage, including color changes, inflammation, and weakening of the surface
- Loss of melatonin - dementia, some mood disorders, severe pain, cancer, and type 2
diabetes
- Loss of vitamin D - low levels associated with all disease processes, curvature of the spine,
dental decay, stunted growth, muscle cramps, spasms/twitching, Osteoporosis, Rickets
- Loss of vitamin A - night blindness, rashes, impaired immunity, retarded growth, fatigue,
skin dryness, lack of motor control, stomach problems, insomnia, loss of appetite, taste and
smell
- Weight gain and increased blood sugar
What can you do to protect yourself and family?
- Removing all LED, fluorescent, and CLF bulbs in your house. Going back to incandescent
or halogen with a Kelvin under 2700.
- Install low watt red incandescent bulbs so to minimize the effects of bright light on your
melatonin
- Daytime blue light blocking metal free glasses that blocks 100% of artificial blue light from
400nm – 450nm
- Avoiding screen time after dark of any kind
- Use blue blocking metal free glasses that block 100% of blue and even green spectrum -
400-550nm
- Cover your skin and thyroid when under artificial lighting
- Downloading Iris software on your computer to block blue light and stop flicker
Tip:
When budget is tight you can order simple laser safety glasses for a minimal investment. You can also stop using high wattage light bulbs and electronics after dark, it's also free.
Here’s some research: