LED: ANSES’s expertise
Identification of risks associated with blue light from LEDs (2010)
At the very beginning of the deployment of this technology, ANSES carried out a first unprecedented expert report on LEDs published in 2010 It underlined the toxicity for the retina of the blue light present in LED lighting and therefore recommended adapting the regulatory framework and normative. Consequently, currently for domestic lighting, only LED lamps of risk groups 0 or 1 (in accordance with the photobiological safety standard NF-EN-62471) are accessible to the general public. The lights most at risk (groups 2 and 3) are reserved for professional use under conditions guaranteeing the safety of workers.
> See our news from 2010: “Lighting systems using light-emitting diodes (LED): health effects to be taken into account”
Confirmation of the risks of blue light from LEDs (2019)
In 2019, ANSES’s new expertise consisted of updating the state of knowledge since 2010 on the various health effects likely to be associated with exposure to blue-rich light and other characteristics of LEDs, that stand out from other lighting technologies.
This expertise confirms the 2010 result on the toxicity of blue light for the eye, which can lead to loss of sight. It highlights, in the short term, effects on the retina, linked to intense exposure to blue light, and in the long term, a contribution to the occurrence of age-related macular degeneration. ANSES recommends restricting the marketing of LED devices that are too rich in blue by adapting the specific regulations for devices other than lamps and lights. Furthermore, given the new experimental data available concerning the mechanisms of phototoxicity, ANSES stresses the need to update the exposure limit values (ELV) for blue light, in particular to take into account the specificity of children, whose lens in the eye filters out blue much less effectively than adults and the elderly
In addition, ANSES highlights the effects of disruption of biological rhythms and sleep, linked to exposure to blue light, even very weak, in the evening or at night, in particular via screens. The Agency therefore recommends limiting the exposure of populations and in particular of children to light rich in blue before bedtime and during the night.
In addition, the Agency emphasizes that the means of protection once morest blue light such as treated lenses, protective glasses or specific screens, show highly variable efficacy once morest the health effects of blue light. ANSES encourages the establishment of standards to define the performance criteria for these means of protection.
Finally, the Agency points to the harmful effects of light at night on biodiversity and the environment. Whatever the ecosystem studied, scientific knowledge convergently shows an increase in mortality and an impoverishment in the diversity of the animal and plant species studied in environments lit at night, including by LED lighting. The Agency recommends strengthen regulations to limit light pollutionwhile ensuring the safety of people.
> See our news of 14 May 2019: “LED: ANSES’s recommendations for limiting exposure to blue light”
LED: recommendations for the public
- Limit exposure to blue-rich light from LED screens before bedtime and at night, especially for children and adolescents.
- Give preference to “warm white” domestic lighting and opt for indirect lighting or using diffusers.
