Thanks to the pandemic, a lot of people are working from home. Looking at the computer screen is inevitable and looking at it for long periods of time can exhaust a person. The strain on the eyes is going to happen and people want to find a way to prevent that.
Enter blue light glasses.
Blue light glasses are glasses that have a tint to them that is supposed to filter out the blue light that a computer screen emits to help prevent eye strain. There is no official study to prove that blue light glasses actually help prevent this and if they work. These are glasses that are tinted to help diminish the blue light that supposedly emits from the computer screen. It’s supposed to help ease eye strain, help with sleeping, and reduce the risk of macular degeneration. They have mixed reviews from anyone that’s tried them so it’s tough finding a pair that’s trustworthy. So the questions remains:
Are blue light glasses worth buying?
During the middle of the pandemic last year, I was furloughed and in quarantine. I decided to go back to school and attend online classes during this time to get my bachelor’s degree. Shortly after this, I accepted a position as an office aide at an elementary school. Then I accepted a position as a writer for Game Rant. My eyes are practically glued to the computer screen now. If I’m not working for Game Rant or the school, my eyes are still glued to the screen because of schoolwork. My eyes have very little time not looking at a screen when I’m awake.
This meant I was (and still am) spending a lot of time looking at a computer screen. My eyes were fine at first. Then as time went on, I could feel the strain on my eyes from looking at the screen for long periods of time. One other thing that alarmed me was some slight dizziness I would feel from time to time. I would lie down to go to sleep and my head would get slightly dizzy from doing so. Now, I know it couldn’t have been from dehydration because I drink a lot of water throughout the day. Not eating enough was out the window too because I ALWAYS make sure I eat.
The only time I felt like this was usually after long day of working and doing my schoolwork. I figured my time looking at the screen was the cause of it and that’s when I started on my journey to see what I could to help with the eye strain and prevent it.
My search led to me blue light glasses. I looked up and down on the internet for weeks, reading reviews and doctors thoughts on them. After about three weeks of looking up information on them, I decided it was something I would risk buying and try it out for myself.
Where to buy them?
Like many people, I decided to go on Amazon to find me a pair. Naturally, there are lot of options to choose from, but I look through the 1–3 star reviews and decide from there.
The one thing I noticed through most of the 1 star reviews was that people were claiming that it was just plastic for the lenses and that they spent on fake glasses. This kind of put me on the edge of buying from Amazon because I wanted to make sure I get my money’s worth. Thus I began looking on the internet again to find out what websites I should buy blue light glasses from. There were a lot of websites that popped up with recommendations with a lot of the same brands popping up on their lists.
After another week of looking through the brands, I decided to with Eye Buy Direct. Their website was pretty simple and easy to navigate along with the buying options. They have a really price range from $6 to $199 for frames so there’s something something for every budget then pay for the lenses. For the lenses, they have a lot of options and unfortunately I don’t know the price range for the other options besides blue light. For the blue light options, Eye Buy Direct has four options ranging from $19 to $59 and they give an explanation on the differences between them. I choose to with the $19 option and see how that would work for me. My frames cost $9 and I bought a small case ($3.50) for them so I paid about $31 overall because of tax and shipping and handling. If there is a free shipping and handling amount, I don’t know it and didn’t mind paying for it. I knew I wouldn’t have to worry (much) about the glasses being fake at least whereas with Amazon, there was a higher risk of that.
It took about a week to a week and a half for my order to come in. Everything was safe and in one piece. Experience with Eye Buy Direct was overall pleasant and I had no problems.
Now about the glasses…
Admittedly, I was a bit skeptic of these glasses, but I was willing to try wearing blue light glasses to help with my eye strain and slight dizziness if it meant not going to the doctor.
Looking at the glasses, the lenses don’t look like anything special at first glance. To be rather blunt, they look like just regular plastic shaped like lenses and fitted into the frames I ordered. Putting them on, I didn’t notice a difference either. It seemed like everything was the same. It wasn’t until I looked at my laptop screen that I noticed the difference. Now, it wasn’t a huge difference, but I saw that my screen wasn’t as bright as it was before. Upon closer inspection, I noticed there was a yellowish-tint to the glasses. It’s really noticeable when I go outside during the day and I take them off.
I started wearing these whenever I was working on my laptop. So that’s about a good 8–14 hours a day looking at a computer screen. After about two weeks of wearing these, I did notice that my eyes weren’t feeling as strained as they normally would. The dizziness I would feel when I lie down went away too.
Now, if you’re thinking I’m writing this after two weeks of wearing these glasses. I’m not. It’s been months since I’ve had them and I will admit that I’m wearing my glasses everyday.
Final Thoughts
My experience with blue light glasses has been positive overall. My eyes don’t hurt like they used to and I don’t get dizzy either. The one thing I noticed that hasn’t changed is my sleeping pattern. Apparently there are some claims that it’s supposed to help people sleep better at night. Because most people (myself included) look at their phones right before they go to sleep, there are some claims that the blue light from devices (i.e. phones and tablets) reduce melatonin levels. Personally, my sleep pattern is more or less the same as it was before I got the glasses. But overall, worth buying.
If you plan on buying blue light glasses, check reviews. Admittedly, after looking at reviews on Amazon, I decided I would buy my glasses from a glasses website. My search led me to Eye Buy Direct and I will have to say it was worth it. Yes, it would’ve been a lot cheaper to buy from Amazon, but I was afraid of buying blue light glasses and ending up with clear plastic shaped like lenses. Read reviews and determine if it’s worth the risk from sites like Amazon.
Of course, there’s the obvious solution of helping with eye strain looking at a screen: which is to lessen it. But some people make a living looking at a screen and it can’t be helped. It could be a placebo effect, but I feel like after months of wearing the glasses that my eye strain has lessened and the dizziness I felt is gone.
What are your thoughts about blue light glasses? Do you plan on trying them out?
-simplesarah
Sarah's Simple Scrawls 