The way we interact with the world is dramatically different than it was 10 or more years ago. Many of us can remember when the public library or the encyclopedia was our primary source of information. What we now refer to as “snail mail”, was the way with which we exchanged information with others over long distances.

The internet has changed all of that. It is now our primary information source. Email, texting or social media is how we exchange that information with others. All of these modern resources are easily available to us on computers, electronic tablets or smart phones. Almost every school system now requires the use of iPad type devices or laptops. Additionally, many kids spend more and more time each year playing video games. Even pre-schoolers are learning their alphabet playing educational games on their iPads. AND YOU ARE READING THIS ELECTRONICALLY!

It’s also interesting to note that there is a higher incidence of learning disabilities such as ADHD over the past 10 years. More and more studies are connecting the dots and showing us that:

  • Children who don’t get the proper amount of sleep are more prone to ADHD symptoms
  • Blue light exposure decreases melatonin production which is needed to sleep properly

Give us a call if you would like to learn more about minimizing the amount of blue light that you or your children are exposed to. Tablet devices and computer screens emit large amounts of blue light. And this is the technology that both we and our children use to function in today’s society. Reading or playing games with an electronic tablet or laptop before bed may be the reason that many of us don’t sleep properly. So what do we do about it? Here are some suggestions:

  • Read from an old fashioned paper book late in the day
  • Use the “white on black” setting on your tablet device
  • Wear blue filtered glasses when using electronic devices

Another interesting development is that the US has joined the rest of the world to phase out the use of incandescent light bulbs in the next few years. They will be replaced with halogen, CFL or LED light sources. All of these emit higher amounts of blue light.

OUR EXPOSURE TO BLUE LIGHT IS INCREASING DRAMATICALLY, NOT ONLY FROM OUR TABLETS AND COMPUTERS, BUT ALSO FROM THE ENVIRONMENTAL LIGHTING IN OUR HOMES AND WORK PLACES

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