are also available, including desktop screen
protectors. There are even blue light-il-
tering sunglasses marketed to speciically
to gamers. But as the damage done by blue
light becomes clearer—just as our vision is
getting blurrier—consumers may demand
bigger changes.COLOUR US CONCERNED
Going forward, Karunarathne plans to stay
in data-collection mode. “This is a new
trend of looking at our devices,” he says.“It will take some time to see if and how
much damage these devices can cause
over time. When this new generation gets
older, the question is, by that time, is the
damage done?” But now that he appears
to have identiied a biochemical pathway
for blue light damage, he’s also looking for
new interventions. “Who knows. One day
we might be able to develop eye drops, that
if you know you are going to be exposed to
intense light, you could use some of those...
to reduce damage.”pits. “They’re low-impact colours that are
great for nighttime shifts,” she writes. They
also eliminate blue light-induced “visual
artefacts”—the sensation of being blinded
by a bright screen in the dark—that often ac-
company blue light and can be hazardous in
some scenarios.
Apple offers a “night shift” setting on its
phones, which allow users to blot out the
blue and ilter their screens through a sun-
set hue. Aftermarket products designed to
control the influx of blue light into our irises
POPSCI.COM.AU 31
Fears of kids damaging their eyes
by reading books by torchlight
were mostly unfounded. But the
effects of staring at a tiny screen
in an otherwise dark room late
into the night, are less benign.