Fluorescent Lighting and Your Eyes 

(adapted from an article by Jacquelyn Jeanty)

Fluorescent lighting has been around for more than one hundred years, when bulbs were first made available for commercial use in the early 1900's. Because it is considered a more efficient use of heat energy as opposed to incandescent lighting, fluorescent lighting has long been a preferred modality to it's more expensive counterpart(s).

Fluorescent lights work by combining electricity, argon gas, and mercury inside of a glass tube, where excited electrons incite the gas within to generate ultraviolet wavelengths, which then react with the mercury to produce visible light. Light is produced along the entire length of the electrode running through the glass tubing. In essence, fluorescent lighting is composed of green, blue, and violet wavelengths which pulsate at 120 cycles per second (cps).

While economical, fluorescent lighting may exert unwanted effects on our eyes. Our eyes are constantly receiving a variety of light wavelengths throughout our awakened hours; our intra-retinal photoreceptors continuously transforming light energy into visual images. Fluorescent energy, as opposed to incandescent or infrared energy, is believed to cause higher amounts of eyestrain due to it's pulsating nature. The shorter, more frequent wavelengths associated with green, blue, and violet light can be potentially more dangerous and fatiguing to the eyes than the longer end of the electromagnetic spectrum.

Although the pulsating nature of fluorescent light is not easily perceptible to the human eye, it nonetheless has been associated with eyestrain, ocular migraines, and classic migraine headaches. Studies comparing the effects of standard fluorescent lighting to the newer, shorter pulse rate fluorescents have shown a reduction in complaints of headaches and eyestrain in the contemporary designs.

For those persons predisposed to migraine headaches, fluorescent light may exacerbate or even precipitate the onset of symptoms. The molecular processes required by the eye's photoreceptors to interpret incoming light waves naturally produces by-products, which if not given enough time for elimination, is believed to cause the symptoms of eyestrain and headache. It has been long known that light is a "trigger" for migraine symptoms in some individuals, so it is not surprising that fluorescent lighting can produce these same symptoms.

To help individuals who are prone to the effects of fluoresecent lighting, it would be reasonable for the eye care practitioner to prescribe anti-reflective eyeglass lenses as well as lightly tinted lenses to lessen problematic symptoms.

Yours in Health,

Kevin L. Crosier, O.D.
http://westminstereyedoctor-com.webs.com
kevinlcrosier@msn.com