The Student's Guide to Blue Light Defense

Happy fall! It's that time of year when we spend more time indoors and on our devices — especially those of us in school, on our laptops or phones for classes, studying, and socializing. If you're like me, you may have headed to your local Target to pick up supplies for class, maybe even some cute new blue light glasses — but did you remember to grab blue light protection for your skin? That's right: your skin needs the same protection as your eyes when it comes to skin-damaging blue light rays, which can lead to premature aging and inflammation.

What Is Blue Light?

Blue light has high-energy waves that are slightly longer than UV rays. They're too short for people to see with the naked eye, which is why we may not realize they can damage our eyes and skin. Unlike UV rays, blue light hasn't been linked to skin cancer; however, studies have shown it causes inflammation and free radical damage that can wreak havoc on your skin over time.

Blue light is emitted by fluorescent light, incandescent light bulbs, and — most commonly — our technology, like cell phones, laptops, flat-screen TVs, and tablets. Another more surprising source of blue light? The sun! Essentially, we're constantly exposed to it, but with our heavy device use, protecting against it has become more important than ever.

Why Is Blue Light Bad for Your Skin? Inflammation, Premature Aging, and Hyperpigmentation

Many experts talk about why blue light is bad for your eyes, but it's also damaging to your skin, causing issues we don't want down the road.

Blue light can also damage your skin by increasing inflammation (swelling and redness) and cell damage that can lead to pigmentation, and it can induce oxidative stress — when free radicals overwhelm cells and cause damage that leads to premature skin aging. Because the energy waves penetrate the skin, deeper damage can be done to essential proteins like collagen and elastin, which can lead to a lack of firmness over time (yep, wrinkles).

How to Build Blue Light Defense Into Your Routine

The good news: adding blue light defense to your daily skincare routine now can help prevent some of the issues related to blue light damage. Here are a few suggestions:

1. Use skincare products with specific blue light defense. Solara Suncare's non-sport, daily-wear face sunscreens always include blue light defense. To make it easy to refresh your defense barrier any time, I recommend the ultra-portable Barrier Defense Hyaluronic Essence Mist for an instant skin-plumping, pollution- and blue-light-defense-boosting spritz. It's a steal for under $18, and it also hydrates skin with Aloe Leaf Juice, plumping Hyaluronic Acid, nourishing Jojoba, and the protective plant power of Indian Cress.
2. Get blue light glasses. By now you know you need them, but have you found a pair you actually love? I love brands that are cost-effective, have stylish frames, and have done the proper testing to ensure they're effective — my favorites are from Jins, and you can also find great budget-friendly options at Target and on Amazon.
3. Filter it out. Pick up a blue light screen filter for your daily electronics on your next Target run. My favorite tip from the tech community: put your iPhone into "Night Shift" mode, even in the middle of the day. This screen color adjustment isn't just helpful for reducing your skin's blue light exposure — it's equally important for your eyes.
4. Take a screen break. Set timers on the apps that steal the most time from your day. It's beneficial for your skin, but perhaps even more so for your mind. Set a cutoff time at night when you stop using electronics, and switch your phone to "Do Not Disturb" so you're not tempted to hop back on. Blue light before bedtime has also been shown to disrupt your sleep cycle.