Blue Light Is Affecting Your Skin In These Ways

We’ve all done it. Spent countless of minutes on our mobile devices catching up on TikTok drama or scrolling on the latest carpet cleaning video. However, digital overexposure can do more harm than good and our skin could pay the price due to the blue light.

UC Davis defines blue light as part of the visible light spectrum, which is what the human eye can see. Vibrating within the 380 to 500 nanometer range, it has the shortest wavelength and highest energy. About one-third of all visible light is considered blue light. Sunlight is the biggest source of blue light. Artificial sources of blue light include fluorescent light, LED TVs, computer monitors, smartphones, and tablet screens.

“Before the prevalence of screens, the aging process was mostly associated with factors such as sun exposure, lifestyle, and environmental pollution,” Dr. Carmen Górriz of Instituto Médico Ricart told a news outlet. “Now a new factor has been introduced: blue light, which is capable of penetrating deeper into the skin than UV rays and generating more free radicals.”

But it can be quite difficult to completely stop the use of computer screens and phones since most people use these devices daily and is an integral part of their routine. 

“This can result in deeper and more sustained damage to skin structures accelerating aging in a different and more insidious way,” said Dr. Carmen Górriz. “It can generate oxidative stress that damages skin cells, DNA, and proteins such as collagen and elastin.”

Moreover, the average American spends 7 hours and 3 minutes looking at a screen each day, and Gen Z averages around 9 hours of screen time per day, not to mention that the average person spends a total of two decades in front of a screen.

What is clear, however, is that the overconsumption of one’s digital devices and the overstimulation they cause creates an undesirable lifestyle for healthy aging, disrupting our sleep-wake cycles.

 Dr. Vicente Mera, head of internal medicine and anti-aging at Sha Wellness Clinic says that it can cause problems of disruption of circadian rhythms, in quality and quantity of restful sleep, and most of the processes involving hormones and neurotransmitters.

A major focus in the field of skin care is the study of how habits interfere with our genes and is at a much higher percentage than we think—some experts claim that 85% of them are regulated by the way we live.

But modern problems require modern solutions. 

Many beauty brands are coming up with beauty products to help ease some of the damage. 

Earlier this year Chanel had one of the biggest launches of the year which revolved around a new eye serum.  

The  Nº1 Revitalizing Eye Serum includes red camellia extract to help prevent wrinkles around that area but with an added bonus: “The cooling effect provided by the rotating cryo-applicator combined with the gel-like texture improves microcirculation and helps relieve screen-induced eye fatigue.”

Eucerin also launched a new skincare product. 

The Epigenetic Hyaluron-Filler Serum has patented technology to reactivate youth genes silenced by an unhealthy lifestyle. 

“The goal is not only to optimize the functioning of aging skin, but to rejuvenate its own cells,” says Nuria Cuesta, medical director of Eucerin.

Focusing on skincare products that prevent aging due to blue light along with the correct skincare products tailored to one’s skin type and using them in the correct order is vital for them to work effectively and produce the intended results. If used in the incorrect order, the ingredients counteract each other and thus become ineffective.