The Internet has been raving about this new trend. Blue light glasses, or blue light blocking glasses, are frames with a pair of non-prescription lenses that block the “blue light” emitted from the screens of electronic devices. The idea is to reduce eye strain from the hours that we spend looking at screens.
Do they really work?
There are a lot of conflicting answers. Some professional eye doctors believe these glasses have some merit in helping mitigate eye strain, caused by staring at computer screens all day. Other sources, such as the American Academy of Ophthalmology, have not recommended any sort of special eyewear for frequent digital device users. Since blue light glasses aren’t considered a true medical device either, there are no FDA regulations regarding the sale of blue light glasses.
Here’s my personal experience. Sometime last year, I noticed my roommate—who is blessed with 20/20 vision, unlike yours truly—wearing a pair of glasses that seemed oddly reflective. She explained that they were blue light glasses, and she swore that they helped reduce the headaches she used to get from staring at a computer screen for hours on end.
Though I didn’t usually have issues with looking at a screen for a long time, I was intrigued by the concept of these glasses. So I hopped on Amazon (a terrible habit, but that’s a topic for a whole other article) and found this super cute pair for less than $20. I’ve had them for just over a year now and have been using them pretty consistently since.
In conclusion…
I honestly don’t think they’ve made that much of a difference. However, I had no problem staring at screens for a long time in the first place, so it wasn’t likely that I would feel a big difference anyway. That said, I do like wearing them—they make me feel productive and professional, which really helps when I need to buckle down and focus on my homework. I guess that means they make a pretty good placebo effect?
If you’re like my roommate and often get headaches from staring at your laptop or phone for too long, I would suggest getting a pair and trying them out. Even if you don’t notice a huge benefit from wearing them, you can always just use them as a cute academic accessory, so it’s a win-win no matter what! (Especially now—I often hop on Zoom right after waking up, and these glasses help hide the fact that I look half-asleep during classes, lol.)
The verdict: For me personally they don’t seem to do much, but they’re cute so I still get plenty of use out of them!