I don’t know about you but I spend hours – HOURS – behind a screen every single day. From laptop to phone screen, it feels like a constant assault on my eyeballs.

After years of punishing my poor optic nerves, I finally invested in blue light glasses this year. And holy moly. What a difference it’s made. I have fewer headaches. I sleep miles better. Most important of all, I finally get to wear glasses for a reason and live out my smart girl fantasy.

My personal experiences aside, this article is all about the cold hard facts about blue light glasses.

Do blue light glasses actually work? Is blue light a problem for us anyway? Are blue light glasses the magic pill that the internet claims it to be?

Stick with me – I shall reveal all.

What Is Blue Light and How Does It Affect Us?

The light spectrum is pretty broad. We have invisible light like UV rays and visible light that we can detect with our flawed human eyeballs. Blue light is on the visible light spectrum. It has the shortest wavelength and therefore the highest energy at around 380-500 nanometers.

You can say that blue light is the most hyperactive of all the types of light we encounter in our everyday lives.

The sun is the main source of blue light for us. You also encounter it in copious amounts via fluorescent light bulbs, computer screens, smartphones, tablets, TVs etc.

Is blue light bad for our health?

If you’re reading this, you’ve probably read all of the terrible things about blue light.

“Your screens are killing your brain!”

That’s not entirely true. Blue light is fantastic at maintaining your alertness and boosting your mood. It’s quite a friendly addictive light to have around.

But you can have too much of a good thing. Long-term exposure of blue light can degrade your retinal epithelial cells. Essentially, since blue light is so hyper, it tires out your eyes over prolonged periods of time.

Blue light is also a key component for regulating your circadian rhythm. So too much blue light exposure at night may keep you awake for longer. This affects your sleep patterns and ability to fall asleep peacefully.

What Are Blue Light Glasses? Here’s The Science

Enter blue light glasses. Seemingly, these magical things shield against too much blue light by way of a filter coating the glass of the lenses. The idea is that the filter prevents too much blue light getting absorbed by your retinas and diminishes the adverse effects that can cause.

In honesty, the data is quite mixed when it comes to how effective blue light glasses are.

For example, as yet, there’s little evidence to support the use of blue light glasses as a way to prevent eye strain. There is more evidence to support the idea that your eyes are straining because of what you’re doing on your computer, rather than the light emitting from it.

However, there is pretty good evidence that blue light glasses can improve your sleep. They are safe to wear all day but are particularly useful in the evenings for sleep reasons.

3 Reasons Why You Should Try Blue Light Glasses

1. Unlock better sleep

Blue light triggers your circadian rhythm. Circadian rhythm is just a fancy term for your 24-hour sleep-wake cycle. It’s managed by your trusty endocrine system that produces the right hormones at the right time.

Your eyes receive blue light as information. They send a signal to the brain to keep us awake and alert. So a grand dose of blue light first thing in the morning is actually quite wonderful if you’re an aspiring morning person (I’ve written all about that here!)

When night falls, your brain triggers the release of melatonin, the sleep hormone. Your body then naturally prepares for bed.

This divine dance between alertness and sleepiness is distrubed when you have your devices blaring blue light in your face all day. Blue light glasses can shield you from some of the light keeping you too alert for too long.

2. Digital fatigue is real – the devices aren’t going anywhere

The Independent reported in a 2020 article that the average British adult spends almost 5000 hours staring at a screen. That guesstimates that the average adult will spend 34 years looking at screens in their lifetime.

Let that sink in. It’s terrifying.

Similarly, US adults spend around 12 hours a day on their TVs, phones and computers.

Because our devices cause so much aggro on our brains, it’s worth learning to live with them rather than avoiding them. The unfortunate fact is most of us rely on our devices to operate. Blue light glasses can make those extended work hours in front of screens a little easier for us to handle long-term.

3. Avoid headaches with the placebo effect

So admittedly, the research on blue light glasses and eye strain is quite weak. So why then are so many people, such as myself, raving about how blue light glasses saved their sanity?

By virtue of sleeping better, you will naturally be less prone to migraines and headaches.

Another hypothesis is the placebo effect. You expect blue light glasses to help you and so they do.

And you know what? I love the placebo effect!

If something is working for you, does it really matter how?

I know that when I use blue light glasses, I have far fewer headaches over the course of long projects. If you’re a regular sufferer of digital fatigue, giving blue light glasses a try can’t hurt you.

Finding The Right Pair of Blue Light Glasses For You

To find the right pair of blue light glasses for you, there are a couple of factors to consider.

Final Thoughts: Blue light is all around us – protect yourself!

I hope this was a balanced view of the powers of blue light glasses. If you get a high quality pair, you can dramatically improve your sleep and digital wellbeing.

To further boost your efforts, here are some final top tips:

We hope this article helped you get to know the truth about blue light and what blue light glasses can and can’t do for you!

Frequently Asked Questions

1. Do blue light filtering glasses work?

Yes and no. The science is a little wonky when it comes to blue light glasses. It’s also been mentioned that the quality of blue light glasses vary widely because the manufacturing process isn’t standardized. You need to do thorough research to ensure you’re getting a good pair.

2. What is computer vision syndrome?

Computer vision syndrome is another term for digital eye strain. Symptoms include:

3. Do I need blue light blocking glasses?

It depends! Blue light blocking glasses can be useful for those who stare at their screens for many hours like tech employees and entrepreneurs. That said, you can get the same effects by implementing good digital wellbeing techniques. For example, using the color filter on your phone screen or taking regular breaks to prevent eye strain. Consider blue light glasses an extra tool in your digital wellbeing toolkit.

4. Can I wear blue light glasses all the time?

Yes you can. There’s no harm in wearing blue light glasses for long periods of time. However, it’s not necessary to wear blue light glasses all day. Evenings are the prime time to wear them.

5. Do you need a prescription for blue light glasses?

You only need a prescription for blue light glasses if you typically wear prescription glasses on a daily basis. You want to purchase a pair of blue light glasses that carry the same prescription as your daily spectacles.

The post What’s the Deal With Blue Light Glasses? Here’s Why You Might Need Them appeared first on Bitcatcha - Online Presence DIY.

Just me, perhaps?

Either way, we all go through times where we feel like we’ve been neglecting our exercise and want to make a change. Unfortunately, it can seem like there’s not enough time or energy left after sleeping 8 hours a day and working for another 8-10.

You’re not alone. This article will give you a structured guide to make time for working out!

When’s The Best Time To Work Out?

Firstly, you don’t necessarily have to be (or become) a morning person to exercise regularly.

Sure, many people prefer morning exercise. Some people claim to feel higher levels of energy throughout the day later after exercising in the morning, and some studies suggest that it’s easier to burn stored fat on an empty stomach.

However, according to Time (pun unintended), although exercising in the morning might have some benefits – the most important thing is that you actually do it.

In other words – as long as you can find time in your day to work out, it doesn’t actually matter when.

Okay, Then How Much Exercise Is Enough?

Being a life-hack enthusiast, I’m constantly on the lookout for ways to be more productive or simply gain more for less.

A while back, I came across a controversial advertisement that claimed you can get your “dream body in just two 15-minute weekly workouts”. After following their program for 12 weeks, I did feel better overall but I did not get my “dream body”.

However, the biggest learnings here were:

The last one helped me a lot, along with a Fitbit activity tracker that tells me how many steps I’m taking or calories I’ve burnt in a day.

While there’s been chatter about how an individual should try to walk 10,000 steps a day (equivalent to 5 miles or 2 hours of activity), research has suggested little to no additional benefit after walking 7,500 steps a day.

My advice here is to simply follow the World Health Organization’s recommendations on physical activity, which are:

Now comes the hard part we’ve all been waiting for – how?

The Excuse Of “I Don’t Have Time”

We all know why exercise is beneficial to us.

Multiple studies have suggested that a lack of physical activity may cut short our lifespans, as morbid as that sounds. So, it’s pretty ironic that we often still tell ourselves that we “don’t have time” to exercise on a busy day.

Here are 5 easy hacks to make more time for physical activity:

Other Common Reasons Not To Exercise – Debunked!

However – is “not exercising” really an issue of time?

Despite working from home and having more free time, many people have become much less active after the global pandemic.

A recent study by McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario has identified five major reasons why people are exercising less during the pandemic:

Let’s look at some of these reasons and see what we can do to counter them.

Reason #1. “I Don’t Have A Place To Exercise”

Not everyone has access to gyms, pools or indoor courts. Maybe there are none close to your home that you can fit into your busy schedule. OR, perhaps you’re still wary about going anywhere where the virus is more likely to spread.

The one thing that remains constant however, is our ability to exercise. So when there’s a will – there’s always a way.

Reason #2. “I Don’t Have Exercise Equipment”

If you can’t, or simply don’t enjoy gyms, let’s see what else can be done.

Reason #3. “I Can’t Find The Motivation”

Before I started my exercise routine every morning, I was also telling myself that I lacked time to work out but I knew it was just an easy excuse to use after a long day at work. I did have time, but I consciously chose to be a couch potato instead.

If you need a real pep talk – check out our article on how to stay motivated.

Reason #4 and #5. “I Can’t Do It Alone”

If you’re feeling anxious or unmotivated, getting some form of social support can go a long way.

Time Is Made, Not Found

Most of it boils down to reframing your thinking.

There are plenty of ways you can squeeze some physical activity into a busy work day, if you have the right strategy. Similarly, a lack of motivation should not be mistaken for a “lack of time” as it’s important to identify the real obstacles that stand in your way.

Finally – when you’ve found a method that works for you, the last step is to build it into your routine.

Sheer willpower can only last so long. You need to literally make time to work out and make it non-negotiable. Habits can take between 90 days to 9 months to foster but once they become ingrained – you won’t even realise you’re on auto-pilot. Using a smart watch and/or an activity-tracking app can help you stay on track as you build these healthier habits.

Good luck! If you found this helpful, make sure to check out the rest of our articles on wellbeing – we’ve written all sorts on work-life balance, sleeping better, and more.

The post How to Find Time for Exercise (Even During a Pandemic) appeared first on Bitcatcha - Online Presence DIY.