BLUE LIGHT PROTECTION
Blue light, part of the sun’s spectrum, is known to damage skin. Our smartphones emit it, too, so should we slather on blue light-protective skincare indoors?
Don’t stare yourself blind on one ‘wonder’ ingredient
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‘Blue light, or high-energy visible light (HEVL), is the electromagnetic radiation from electronic screens, such as mobiles, laptops and televisions. Increased exposure may be causing slacker skin, brown spots and multiple other signs of ageing,’ says Rowan Hall-farrise, head of global education at QMS Medicosmetics. She advises wearing a mineral sunscreen (one with the filters zinc oxide and titanium dioxide) indoors as ‘initial studies indicate this could offer blue light protection’. She’s also a fan of seeking out antioxidant ingredients. ‘These mitigate the inflammation caused by environmental stressors, of which blue light is one.’ It’s complicated ‘Marketing myth,’ says Anjali Mahto. ‘Based on current research, the small amount of HEVL emitted by our devices is unlikely to damage skin. But HEVL from daylight is a concern, causing cell damage and – disproportionally in darker skin tones – hyperpigmentation. So HEVL protection is actually more worthwhile outside. The problem is that the only things that block HEVL are iron oxides. Annoyingly, these mineral powders (not the same thing as mineral UV filters, such as zinc oxide and titanium dioxide) have a pale tint that can leave a cast on dark skins, so they are rarely used. However, they can be found in a few sunscreens, some formulated to avoid this. Antioxidant protection also helps, in that it counters the free-radical damage wreaked on your cells by blue light, UV and infrared. I recommend wearing a vitamin C serum (look for 10-15% L-ascorbic acid) under your sunscreen: it’s one of the best-studied antioxidants in skincare.’