The coronavirus pandemic has dimmed the borders between work life and home life. Most people in Work-From-Home mode have been complaining about having to spend 14 hours a day looking at a computer screen between attending children's school online and work, also glancing on their phone or laptop screens. 

All of this comes at a price. With intense work focussing on the digital screen that emits blue light, the eyes burn and the brain begins to throb. 

Many of us try to reduce our screen time. Some even adjust the glare on the screen by using a daytime-night-mode regulating app. Who hasn't heard of the blue-light cutter/blocking glasses?

Are blue-light cutting glasses not effective? Ophthalmologist Yuna Rapoport, MD, founder and director of Manhattan Eye tells NBCnew.com. “The short answer is that blue light glasses really don’t help our eye health at all... But screens are harmful to our eyes because when we stare at screens, we forget to blink. This causes our corneas to dry out, which can lead to itching, burning and fatigue.”

How Blue light exposure steals our sleep: Ophthalmologist Kara Hartl, MD, has spent over a decade studying the effects of blue light on our eyes and bodies, says the NBCnew.com report. She said — one of the highest wavelengths that come off screens is in the 460-nanometer range, within which they’re absorbed by melanopsin, a pigment in our eyes that controls our circadian rhythm. Blue light targets melanopsin — when our eyes don’t see blue light, it signals to melanopsin that it’s time for our bodies to sleep. On top of that, blue light suppresses the body’s release of melatonin, a hormone that regulates our sleep cycle. Darkness prompts our body to start producing it and light causes that production to stop.

The connection between Circadian Rhythms, blue lights, and sleep:

According to The Sleep Foundation, light is the most important factor in aligning circadian rhythms. When we stare at screens before bed, we’re exposed to blue light, which tricks our brains into thinking it’s still daytime and disrupts our circadian rhythm. 

So what’s the point of blue light glasses? They can positively impact our sleep cycle. Truth is that Blue light glasses can mitigate these effects but not totally eliminate them.

(Working on digital screens? Use two blue light blocking glasses -- plain blue-light cutter lens by day and the yellow/orange lenses from evening onwards. Or better yet, use the yellow tint option throughout) Try the yellow tinted blue-light cutting glasses: Some blue light glasses have yellow lenses. Dubbed “sleep glasses,” Hartl tells NBCnew.com, they absorb blue light while allowing other wavelengths — units by which we measure light — to pass through. The darker yellow lenses are, the more efficiently they block blue light. And while clear lenses in blue light blocking glasses won’t harm you in any way, Rapoport said, they also don’t help your eye health, nor do they benefit your sleep cycle. These clear lenses offer minimal blue light filtration, making them less effective than yellow lenses.

Best blue light blocking sleep glasses: Hartl and Rapoport recommend blue light blocking “sleep glasses”' over traditional blue light glasses. Hartl suggests wearing the glasses for two to three hours before you go to bed if you’re looking at screens. You can order the best blue light blocking glasses online or from stores of brands like Felix Gray and Lens Direct, says the NBCnew.com report. Blue Light monster: Save your eyes, secure your sleep

The circadian clock is most sensitive to light from about 2 hours before usual bedtime and through the night, until about 1 hour after usual wake-up in the morning (this is the sensitive period). Exposure to light during these times will affect when your body naturally gets sleepy and is ready to fall asleep.

Disclaimer: Tips and suggestions mentioned in the article are for general information purpose only and should not be construed as professional medical advice. Always consult your doctor or a dietician before starting any fitness programme or making any changes to your diet.

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