Do LED Lights Emit Harmful Radiation?

Sunscreen, visors, and even beauty products are a necessity in any sunny climate. Yet many people may still be unaware of the issues associated with artificial light and LED UV radiation.

Advances in LED technology have made bulbs cheaper, more cost-effective, and more energy-efficient than their predecessors, metal halide and high-pressure sodium lamps. But do LED lights emit UV light? In this guide, our experts explain the relationship between LED bulbs and UV light, and whether they pose a health hazard.

UV Light in LED Lights

LED lights, or light-emitting diodes, are widely known for their energy efficiency and long lifespan. Unlike traditional incandescent bulbs and some compact fluorescent lamps (CFL bulbs), LED lights are primarily designed to emit visible light without producing UV radiation. This makes them a safer choice for prolonged exposure in home and office environments. The technology behind LEDs enables them to produce light through electroluminescence, which generally excludes UV radiation unless specifically designed, such as with UV-emitting bulbs used in certain specialty applications such as blacklights or grow lights.

UV Light in Fluorescent Lights

So, do fluorescent lights emit UV light? It turns out that they do emit a different amount of UV radiation compared to standard indoor LED bulbs. On the other hand, fluorescent bulbs do emit a small amount of UV radiation. This is because these bulbs use a mercury vapor process to produce light, which itself produces UV rays that are then converted into visible light by the phosphor coating inside the bulb. While the amount of UV emitted by fluorescent bulbs is generally low and considered safe under normal use, there are still concerns about UV exposure, especially with older or damaged bulbs.

Are UV rays emitted by bulbs a health hazard?

While protecting yourself from the sun's UV rays can help reduce skin diseases such as melanoma and other cancers, do artificial bulbs have the same concerns? If the threat was as dangerous as exposure to the sun, we wouldn't be exposed to indoor lighting as much as we are now. The threat of artificial lighting is more subtle.

Of course, exposure to specific types of UV rays can greatly increase the likelihood of developing certain diseases, such as cancer. UV booths in tanning salons are a good example. Light bulbs in your home will not have the same intensity or level of UV radiation.

Do LED bulbs emit UV radiation?

For most LED bulbs, whether they are used in industrial applications or otherwise, they do not emit UV radiation. In early LED lighting, the reason they did not emit UV radiation was because they could not emit white light. However, since the advent of white light LEDs, this has changed. White light LED bulbs are made by coating bright blue LEDs with phosphors. This causes the blue to be absorbed, allowing only the white to pass through.

While most types of LED lighting do not emit any UV light, bright blue does emit a small amount. However, the phosphor reduces this to such a small amount that it is essentially negligible. No filters are needed, which is why they are used in many environments where photosensitivity is a concern. The lack of UV light is one of the many reasons why LED lighting has surpassed high intensity discharge bulbs.