Blue Light Hazard
As there is growing controversy as to whether or not the blue light emitted by electronics devices is harmful to the human body, and a study on blue light is likely to fuel the controversy.
“According to the findings of the Korean Photonics Technology Institute and LG Display, LCD TVs emit 3.1 times as much blue light as OLED TVs,” said Choi Dong-won, the managing director of LG Display. His remarks were made in the IMID Display Business Forum 2014 held at the Korea International Exhibition Center on Oct. 14.
LG Display measured the amount of blue light 210 cm away from TVs, 60 mm from monitors, and 30 cm from smartphones. TVs were measured in standard mode, and target brands or screen sizes were not mentioned.
TVs are larger, and therefore so is the amount of blue light emitted from devices. As a result, some point out that the index for blue light might be an unexpected hurdle in the display industry.
Blue light is high energy visible light with wavelengths of 380nm to 550nm. It is widely acknowledged to cause discomfort in the eye and damage the retina. An article on blue light published by Harvard Medical School in May 2012 said, “Research shows that the exposure to blue light at night may contribute to cancer, diabetes, heart disease, and obesity, in addition to insomnia.”
“In particular, children's retinas are vulnerable to damage from blue light if exposed for several hours,” reported the Huffington Post in July. Blue light could also reportedly cause up to an 80 percent loss in visual cells, since it drastically increases the amount of oxygen radicals in the eye.