Why are LED lights becoming a problem?

SO MUCH is said about light emitting diode or what we popularly known as LED in the news and online that consumers are feeling they are one of the best in their family.

LED Lights are better for a number of reasons such as providing a color that is crisp and bright like no other form of artificial light has been able to accomplish; not drawing energy in the same way that incandescent lights do but rather costing about 80 percent less for operation, and are more energy efficient than compact fluorescent bulbs which contain toxic mercury; and generating such a minute amount of heat making these light remain cool to the touch.

But, LED lights are also refuted to become a big problem. Or is this merely a black propaganda to how LED lights are actually becoming the wave of the future, and are changing the way the world is seeing things, literally? Studies show that the popularity of LED lights is driving an increase in light pollution worldwide, with dire consequences for human and animal health.

Experts say this is a problem because nighttime lights are known to disrupt our body clocks and raise the risks of cancer, diabetes and depression. As for animals, these lights can kill – whether by attracting insects or disorienting migrating birds or sea turtles.

The i ssue i s not j ust the LED l i ghts themselves, which are more efficient because they need far less electricity to provide the same amount of light; rather, it is that people keep installing more and more lights.

The issues of most concern identified by experts concern the eye due to the toxic effect of blue light and the risk of glare, adding that the blue light necessary to obtain white LEDs

causes “toxic stress” to the retina. According to studies, blue light causes a photochemical risk to the eye, the level of which depends on the accumulated dose of blue light to which the person has been exposed, which is generally the result of low-intensity exposure repeated over long periods.

Blue light is recognized as being harmful and dangerous for the retina, as a result of cellular oxidative stress adding that 3 groups are particularly at risk; children, populations which are already light-sensitive, and workers likely to be exposed to high-intensity lighting. The other main risk of LED light is from glare. For indoor lighting, it is generally agreed that luminance higher than 10,000 cd/ m ² causes visual discomfort whatever the position of the lighting unit in the field of vision. Because the emission surfaces of LEDs are highlyconcentrated point sources, the luminance of each individual source can be 1000 times higher than the discomfort level.

The level of direct radiation from this type of source can therefore easily exceed the level of visual discomfort. Other risks related to the use of LED lighting systems have also been raised, but further study is required.

There are solutions that researchers are coming up with though to stop these problems surrounding LED lights. They include using lower intensity lights, turning lights off when people leave an area, and choosing LED lights that are amber instead of blue or violet, since these tend to be the most harmful to animals and humans. People also need to question their assumptions, for instance, that nighttime lights make the world safer for there is no conclusive evidence that additional light reduces crime. (