Are LED Lamps Damaging To Skin?

1. What is an LED?

A light emitting diode (LED) is a semiconductor device that emits light radiation when an electric current is passed through it. Most LEDs emit in a narrow range of wavelengths, from infrared (wavelength of about 1000 nanometers) to ultraviolet (about 300 nanometers). LEDs are used in remote controls, security lighting, mobile phones, tablets and computer screens, televisions, illuminated indicators, home lighting, outdoor lighting, street and garden lighting, traffic lights, and increasingly in the automotive industry, to name just a few applications.

LED lights are up to 90% more energy efficient than incandescent (luminescent) bulbs and last much longer than traditional light sources, making them more economical and environmentally friendly. They also do not burn out suddenly, plunging people into darkness, but rather slowly lose brightness over time. In addition, their flexible size and shape allow them to be adapted for a variety of needs. Unlike incandescent light sources, LED emitters run cool. However, the driving electronics can get hot and need to be cooled to ensure they are not damaged, and they can also sometimes fail.

These are some of the advantages of LED lights that have led to their widespread use. Their growing popularity has, in turn, led the European Commission to ask the Scientific Committee on Health, Environment and Emerging Risks (SCHEER) to review the latest evidence to assess whether these innovative light sources pose any potential risks to human health. The results of the review were published in the SCHEER Opinion on the potential risks to human health from light-emitting diodes (LEDs).

2. What risks does exposure to LEDs pose?

The optical radiation emitted by LED lights is potentially damaging to the eyes and skin only in certain circumstances, depending on several variables that must be considered. These variables include the spectrum (or wavelength distribution) of the LED light source, the intensity of the lighting (especially in the blue band), the exposure time, the health of the eyes, and how people look at the LEDs – staring at them without blinking or actively moving their eyes, looking directly at them or looking at them with peripheral vision.

However, exposure to optical radiation from LEDs is likely to be negligible compared to natural outdoor light. The main source of optical radiation is the sun. Other types of lighting, such as ordinary light bulbs, also expose people to optical radiation, which is only part of the electromagnetic spectrum, which is divided into radio waves, microwaves, terahertz (or submillimeter) radiation, optical radiation (infrared (IR), visible light (VIS), ultraviolet (UV)), X-rays, and gamma rays.

Throughout life, the human eye is exposed to high levels of natural and artificial optical radiation sources, which vary in spectrum and intensity. Long-term exposure to optical radiation throughout life may lead to degenerative eye diseases, such as age-related macular degeneration.