Blue light: what's hype, what's real
Screen strain is real, but not everything sold as a fix actually helps.
Blue-light coatings are the most oversold product in eyewear, and also genuinely useful for some people. Both things are true.
What screens actually do to your eyes
Staring at a screen makes you blink around a third as often as normal. That is what dries your eyes and makes them ache by evening — not the wavelength of the light.
Where blue-cut lenses help
Mostly at night. Blue light in the evening suppresses melatonin and delays sleep. Cutting it after sunset is a reasonable, evidence-backed thing to do.
What works better than any lens
Nothing beats the 20-20-20 habit, and it costs nothing.
- Every 20 minutes, look at something 20 feet away for 20 seconds
- Drop screen brightness to match the room, not to beat it
- Blink deliberately — it sounds silly and it works
- Keep the top of the screen at or just below eye level
