Are “blue light glasses” worth the expense to alleviate eye strain and headaches induced by hours spent in front of a computer screen?

Some BOHS students and teachers are saying, “YES.”

Blue light can cause eye strain; dry, watery, and irritated eyes; and can even induce migraines, according to Health Cleveland Clinic. To help minimize these negative effects from spending hours looking at a blue light-emanating computer monitor, people can spend less time on the computer, and they can try “blue light glasses,” which are designed with a yellow tint to filter out the blue light in electronic screens.

 “Sometimes I get a headache and my eyes hurt from constantly looking at a screen. Once I put on my glasses, all of it goes away after a couple minutes,” Irene Kim, sophomore, said. 

Autumn Clodt, sophomore, said that her blue light glasses are helping her eyes feel less “hazy” during class. 

But the science behind the new devices is still untested. “We don’t really have any data that supports blue blocking glasses as being better for your eyes when you’re using a computer,” Amir Mohsen, University of Texas professor of ophthalmology, said. And the American Academy of Ophthalmology said, “the problems people complain about are simply caused by overuse of digital devices,” not from blue light.

But even teachers are using, and enjoying, blue light glasses due to the strain from teaching classes all day on Zoom. Missy Burns, Dance teacher, noted that her computer would seem “fuzzy” while making presentations or responding to emails. During the third week of distance learning, she bought two pairs of the blue light glasses. Burns “noticed an immediate change in alleviating headaches and strained eyes” once she put the glasses on.