Before purchasing and even using anything, it’s always wise to check for the safety and efficiency of the material.
There are various types of lights to choose from, one of them being the LED lights that have been making a name for themselves. If you are perhaps planning to purchase this type of light, it’s essential to ask, “Are LED lights safe?”
Getting To Know LED Lights
LED lights are quickly making their way to the top and becoming the standard lighting technology in many applications.
In fact, in some cases, people call for LED lights to be the substitute as they are the only alternative, especially as the incandescents and CFL lighting sources are slowly phasing out.
Before purchasing LED lights, it’s wise to get to know them first. This is to understand better whether they fit your taste, your budget, or whether they come in handy at all.
So, to start with, what are LED lights? The LED in Led lights stands for Light Emitting Diode. Led lights are semiconductor devices.
Semiconductor devices are electronic materials or components that depend on semiconductors like germanium, silicon, gallium arsenide, and other organic semiconductors.
LED lights emit optical radiation during contact with electric current, e.g., when current passes through these components.
These lights have been making a name for themselves because of their characteristics. Here are some of their main features that sway buyers in their way.
- LED lights are more efficient than other lights like incandescent bulbs by 90%.
- LED lights are long-lasting and typically last longer than other conventional light sources available in the market. These lights usually last for up to 15 years.
- LED lights operate even during the cold. They perform better in cold temperatures by 5%.
- LED lights do not contain mercury, so their adverse effects on the environment are lesser than incandescent bulbs. These lights also do not heat up as much, and so they do not emit U.V. radiation as other types of lights do. When exposed to them, excessive heat and U.V. radiation can be dangerous for humans and other materials. LED technology also keeps on improving their models, so they keep on getting better while finding ways to serve the planet better. These are some of the characteristics that make them more environmentally friendly and economical. Thus, more and more people prefer LED lights over others.
- LED lights emit light in one direction only, unlike conventional lights that emit at 360 degrees. Again, emitting light in multiple directions consumes more energy than those in a single direction.
Debunking Myths About LED Light Safety
If you happen to read more and more about LED lights, you might also encounter a lot of myths regarding their effects on your health.
Before succumbing to rumors, it’s smart to do your research to clarify. Most rumors may be baseless, and you won’t know without learning about them yourself. Who knows, you might be missing out on something good just because of rumors.
LED Lights contain Toxic Materials
You might have heard of the rumors about LED lights containing toxic materials. Well, this isn’t true. LED lights and manufacturers with their reputation do not allow toxic material into their products.
What makes LED lights better than fluorescent lights is their recyclable capability with regular electronics, which saves you money.
On the other hand, fluorescent lights contain mercury, requiring special care in a specialized facility to get recycled. Just make sure that you purchase your LED lights from a manufacturer that follows the criteria.
LED Lights Interfere With Our Circadian Rhythms
Since we have significantly developed and switched from candles to modern lights, it has also shifted our sleeping patterns. This is only normal because having any light inside a room can affect your circadian rhythm.
Staring at them before you sleep can keep you up for longer than usual. In conclusion, it’s really up to the customer whether they are firm in implementing their sleeping routine.
If so, they would manage their screen time and make sure to turn off their gadgets and things that emit light that might keep them from sleeping on time.
LED Lights Are Bad For Your Eyes
You might have heard this a lot, especially in the growth of LED lights. However, this is false. LED lights are as safe as other light sources. LED lights are even used in procedures involved in health and skin therapies.
LED lights do not contain Ultraviolet (U.V.) rays, unlike other light treatments. What LED lights have is blue light which is also genuinely present in sunlight.
Again, protecting your eyes all depends on your time management. It’s good to avoid too much time staring at screens to protect your eyes.
Dissecting “Blue Light”
Blue light is one of the visible lights in the spectrum. There are many other lights visible, including red, orange, yellow, green, indigo, violet. Screens nowadays all emit blue light.
Yes, this means your tablets, cellphones, televisions, laptops, computers, etc., all emit blue light. Blue light has beneficial effects on the human body, as evidence suggests.
This light can help in improving your memory, make you more alert, improve your reaction time, improve your attention span, and raise your mood.
However, too much of everything can be harmful, which does not exempt blue light. This is why experts suggest that people minimize their time on their screens because too much exposure to blue light, especially during the night time can have adverse effects on your health.
How can LED lights pose a threat to your health?
LED lights generate optical radiation that may cause damage to the eyes and skin. These damage risks only take place in specific circumstances. The possibility of “damage” depends on several factors that must be considered, namely:
- The LED light source’s spectrum or called wavelength distribution, in other words.
- How intense the light is.
- Exposure time or how long the person has been exposed to blue light.
- Optical health and the person’s manner of looking into these light sources. A person may be staring at LED lights and ceasing eye movement (this includes blinking, etc.), they may be looking at them attentively and straight on, or perhaps, the light is seen through the peripheral vision. These are some of the essential things to consider.
Blue light is helpful for humans. However, like everything else, too much of it can pose a threat to your eye health. This is why you are recommended to limit your screen exposure time.
You cannot wholly avoid blue light also because it’s naturally occurring. All you can do is limit your time of exposure. You can do the following.
- The first thing you can do is to limit your screen time.
- You can wear protective glasses such as anti-reflecting lensed glasses, blue-light blocking glasses, and yellow-tinted glasses that are specific for computer exposure.
- You can also maximize screen filters available on most devices.
Main Advantages of LED Lights
In conclusion, the myths about LED light safety are all pretty much over sensationalized by the media and people’s mouths.
This is why it pays to do research before coming to conclusions. Here are some of the advantages of LED lights compared to traditional lighting or other light sources.
Lifespan
Compared to the ordinary incandescent bulb, the lifespan of an LED light is far longer. This makes them very efficient. Since the usual lifespan of incandescent bulbs is a thousand hours and a typical LED light has a lifespan of 50,000 hours.
This means that your LED lights could last up to 100,000 hours, depending on how you use them. This in consideration, LED lighting lifespan ranges from six up to twelve years before they need to be replaced.
Doing all the maths, LED lights can live 40 times as long as an incandescent light bulb.
Efficiency
When purchasing something regularly used, you must first inspect its efficiency. This way, you get the value you deserve for the money spent. LEDs are known for their low power consumption, one of the most looked for characteristics in a light source.
When evaluating the energy efficiency of different lighting solutions, you have to look at their luminous efficacy or usable lumens. These concepts refer to the quantity of light emitted by the device for each unit of power (watt) consumed by the bulb.
LED lights convert about 70% of total energy capacity into light. This is possible because LED lights have a high level of lumen output each watt. Thus, crowning them more efficient in conserving and using energy than traditional bulbs.
Traditional light sources are less efficient because of their tendency to waste energy by using up significant amount of said energy for heat conversion. For example, a 6 watt LED bulb produces the same light as a 40-watt incandescent.
Summary
Questions like “Are LED lights safe?” are expected, especially when you are still in the process of switching light sources.
Health is a priority, so knowing if your family is safe when using these things is good. Again, research is paramount, and it’s never helpful to believe baseless rumors quickly.