Concerned over blue light and our eye health

[Uzidaisies]

Does the covid vaccine really make your junk fall
Off ?

That's gluten.

 

[Chrisv.]

Not the same.

 

[Uzidaisies]

"The amount of blue light from electronic devices, including smartphones, tablets, LCD TVs, and laptop computers, is not harmful to the retina or any other part of the eye"

Yeah i read it, you can draw your own conclusions. I'm just supplying the information.

 

[Chrisv.]

Yeah i read it, you can draw your own conclusions.

It's a false equivalence. I think the best we will get here is to say that the specific context of coral growing LEDs has probably not been studied...but it's misleading to equate it to a cell phone.

 

[Uzidaisies]

It really comes down to intensity. Don't look into the light too much and i think it's fine. Personally, i feel that the intensity of the light after its passed through the water and absorbed and refracted and all that, is not that dangerous in the context of normal aquarium viewing.

 

[Chrisv.]

It really comes down to intensity. Don't look into the light too much and i think it's fine. Personally, i feel that the intensity of the light after its passed through the water and absorbed and refracted and all that, is not that dangerous in the context of normal aquarium viewing.

Totally with you on that. But the op was specifically concerned about the eye health of his young kids. Young kids dont know any better and they DO stare directly into the lights. I'm not at all concerned about scatter coming through the water and out the front of the tank. I'm specifically saying that toddlers look at the lights even when they are told not to, and that it is unreasonable to compare that to screen time.

 

[Uzidaisies]

It's a false equivalence. I think the best we will get here is to say that the specific context of coral growing LEDs has probably not been studied...but it's misleading to equate it to a cell phone.

I'm not presenting it as an equivalence. There is additional information, including that regarding high intensity blue light, and the risks. "High-intensity blue light from any source is potentially hazardous to the eye. Industry sources of blue light are purposely filtered or shielded to protect users. However, it may be harmful to look directly at many high-power consumer LEDs simply because they are very bright. These include "military grade" flashlights and other handheld lights."

 

[Uzidaisies]

Totally with you on that. But the op was specifically concerned about the eye health of his young kids. Young kids dont know any better and they DO stare directly into the lights. I'm not at all concerned about scatter coming through the water and out the front of the tank. I'm specifically saying that toddlers look at the lights even when they are told not to, and that it is unreasonable to compare that to screen time.

I agree, OP should shield the light if his children look up into it.

 

[Goaway]

There is a lot of research the conclusively shows that blue light causes damage to your eyes. Even if you don't stair directly at the light. Interestingly, there is also research that shows that eating green leafy vegetables can prevent the damage.

A risk that shouldn't be taken lightly.

But, is looking at our water dangerous as well as the light bleed?

Lights are dangerous. Look a what laser pointers and aiptasia wands do.

I don't take this subject lightly. Its why I have a canopy so my son won't stare at the leds. Because he will.

 

[Harold999]

How about option C, get metal hallide lights! IMO, lights that make corals glow like space aliens is not normal, and not attractive. With MH lights, reef tank will go from looking like a science fiction movie scene to looking like an actual bright sunny reef.

As if metal halide doesn't have blue in it's spectrum. If you would put a filter on your halides which would kill the reds and greens then your corals would glow too. You simply don't see the glow because the reds and greens fool your eyes thinking they see white, but it's there.
Red + Green + Blue in equal amounts is 6500K white. Remove the reds and greens and you will see your corals glowing.

 

[John08007]

I'm not an engineer or an eye Dr but I would assume that out lights are not much different than being outside in sunny Florida in the summer. You obviously can't look directly into the LED just like you shouldn't look directly at the sun. I also have a good on my tank, so the only light I see from my kessil is about 1" between the waterline and hood and through the water.

 

[Harold999]

I'm not an engineer or an eye Dr but I would assume that out lights are not much different than being outside in sunny Florida in the summer.

Even on a cloudy day you are surrounded by blue light. Together with the reds and greens we see it as white.
As long as you don't look directly into your tank light for too long there is nothing to worry about.

 

[Chrisv.]

Even on a cloudy day you are surrounded by blue light. Together with the reds and greens we see it as white.
As long as you don't look directly in your tank light for too long there is nothing to worry about.

Again, op was concerned about his young kids staring into the light.

 

[Goaway]

Again, op was concerned about his young kids staring into the light.

There are answers here to help the problem. I hope he finds one that works best for his situation.

 

[Harold999]

Again, op was concerned about his young kids staring into the light.

Their eyes/brain will warn them automatically just like when they play outside.

Only pure UV is dangerous because you can't see it, the brain doesn't warn you. Looking at the bulb of a uv sterilizer is very dangerous.

 

[Chrisv.]

Their eyes/brain will warn them automatically just like when they play outside.

Only pure UV is dangerous because you can't see it, the brain won't warn you.

Nah.

 

[Rmckoy]

I give it a year.

I’ve had 2 doses .
I should watch for signs in the next 6 months

 

[John08007]

Again, op was concerned about his young kids staring into the light.

Then I'd suggest getting a hood so that there is no way to possibly stare directly into the light.

 

[sfin52]

I know this is a topic that we all want to ignore. But I am officially concerned over my tank lights having a negative impact on my and my family’s (2 small children) eye health. I had concerns over this topic before getting in to the hobby… but always ignored/silenced that tiny voice in my head saying it was too risky—especially for my kids.
So, I am left at a crossroads of if I need to get rid of my tank or if I can find ways to ease my concerns.
My tank is small, just a IM nuvo fusion 20 gallon.
I have considered doing a custom built canopy to block out the excess light. This seems like a somewhat difficult project.
An extreme idea I had was to alter the light schedule so that the blue lights were coming on when my kids were asleep… say, from 7pm-12am, then dark from 12am-sunrise, roughly 6 hours of dark?
The tank is in our family room/kitchen area, where we spend most of our time. We LOVE the tank and watching our fish/corals. So I don’t want to move it to another room… though I guess that’s better than getting rid of it all together.
I need to do something but I am not sure what. Does anyone have any input on this issue?

I have my lights less than 4 inches above the water. I run t5 so now worry about spread

 

[Ben Pedersen]

But, is looking at our water dangerous as well as the light bleed?

Lights are dangerous. Look a what laser pointers and aiptasia wands do.

I don't take this subject lightly. Its why I have a canopy so my son won't stare at the leds. Because he will.

Looking at any blue light even indirectly for an extended time is not good for your eyes... However, viewing blue light after it passes through your tank water and glass reduces the amount of light and potential damage. Eating green leafy vegetables and consuming healthy amounts of vitamin C also reduces impact and risk.

In my opinion, the biggest concern is the accumulated repeated exposer of quick glances (reflections when viewing from the top, reflection from a lighted sump, looking up at the tank and seeing the light, etc.).

If you really want to know the risks... read this. Sadly, after I did, I seriously considered getting rid of my tank, and I have been reefing for around 40 years and love it.

Research progress about the effect and prevention of blue light on eyes

In recent years, people have become increasingly attentive to light pollution influences on their eyes. In the visible spectrum, short-wave blue light with wavelength between 415 nm and 455 nm is closely related to eye light damage. This high energy blue ...

www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

People don't want to know the truth because we love reefing and it is scary.