Blue light is bad for your skin: fact or fable?
Can you get pigment spots, fine lines, and wrinkles faster from the light of laptops, tablets, telephones, and television? Beauty brands claim that they do. But is that right?
You may already have seen them at a perfumery: the special creams, jars, and sprays that you have to protect against watching Netflix or excessive Instagrammen, and more specifically against the blue light that spreads out from your laptop and smartphone. That light is not only bad for your eyes and night’s sleep, it would also age your skin.
What does science say?
When the cosmetics industry makes such statements, they invariably refer to scientific studies. Only there is one catch: the research into the influence of blue light on the skin is still in its infancy and is paid more than once by pharmaceutical or cosmetic companies.
“Because of the interference of these companies, you know that there is an interest: making money. And you may feel some suspicion about it”, Tamar Nijsten, professor of dermatology at the Erasmus MC, said.
Dr. Olivier Doucet, responsible for the latest developments at Lancaster beauty brand, made the same comment. “I think this blue light from your computer has only a very small impact, especially compared to the damage that UV light can cause to your skin. But we are still in the first phase of the research. The whole light spectrum has an unmistakable influence on us, but we do not yet know which one. For example, cinema projectors release a serious light exposure,” he told NINA.
Sleep deprivation
In short, it does not hurt to smear a cream against blue light, but do not expect miracles yet. Even if you have scrolled through that Instagram feed for an hour or watched a few extra episodes of your favourite series, you should not be afraid that you will get up with extra crows the next day. However, you have to be careful that you do not make a habit of it.
We all know in the meantime that blue light can disturb your sleep. And people who sleep badly or little for a long time are more likely to have accelerated skin aging. Something that you have to take into account. In addition, there are many other factors that stimulate skin aging.
For example, looking at a screen that is too small is good for more crow’s feet, a dirty iPhone against your cheek can lead to acne, and naturally, you will not get a healthy blush when you’re sitting behind a screen all day long.
