Exposure to blue light causes skin damage. Can we prevent it?

Due to the coronavirus pandemic, many people ended up working from home, which resulted in significantly increased screen time. What does this mean for our skin? 

Blue light, also known as High Energy Visible or HEV light, is the artificial light that comes from the technologies we use in our daily lives. If exposed to blue light for long periods of time, not only can it disturb sleep cycle and damage vision, but also contribute to decreased melanin production and uneven skin texture. We know the damaging effects of UVA and UVB, but research has shown that blue light can penetrate the skin pass the epidermis and into the dermal layer where there is high content of collagen and elastin. Ultimately, blue light will speed up the process of aging and hyperpigmentation, and your skin will gradually lose elasticity and firmness.

How can you protect your beautiful skin from blue light?

1. Renew your skin with essential nutrients and antioxidants.  Apply antioxidant-rich moisturizer on your face and neck. October Beauty's October Moment Brightening Moisturizing Cream contains Bletilla Striata (known to be 4x stronger than that of Vitamin C) and Vitamin E, both which work in harmony to protect against oxidative stress and counter the side effects of blue light and UV damage on the skin.

2. Protect your skin from the sun every day. Apply physical mineral sunscreens that contain iron oxide can give additional benefits in protecting your skin not only from harmful UVA/UVB rays and other environmental stressors, but also from visible light.

3. Lower the brightness level on your screens to 50% or go on the darker "Night Shift" setting to help prevent skin damage.

 4. Wear blue light protection glasses or place a blue light screen protector over the screen. This will really help your skin AND eyes from straining.