Light-emitting diodes (LEDs) are being widely promoted as having better energy efficiency than other lighting sources, and as being more environmentally friendly because they do not contain mercury.
But this is a case where a product does not contain one toxic substance, but does contain others.
A new study done by UC Irvine showed that LED bulbs contain various levels of arsenic, lead, and nickels, and should be classified as household hazardous waste. If disposed as regular landfill trash, these bulbs could leach these metals into soil and water when they are crushed and broken.
Researchers determined there is little toxic exposure when using unbroken bulbs at home.
At least they are more difficult to break than compact fluorescents.
Here’s another reference on the dangers of LED bulbs.
Scientific American: The Dark Side of LED Lightbulbs
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/led-lightbulb-concerns/
Specialty bulbs are still available at health food stores and catalogs. They are quite a bit more expensive than the incandescents that were available until now. I sent one to a friend and she was on the phone within minutes after turning it on to tell me it made her feel happy! Here is a link to one source.
http://www.cutcat.com/category/Color_Corrected_Incandescent_Bulbs/c79 And halogen lamps are still available. Both incandescent and halogen bulbs are wonderful in winter because they put out heat that can help to warm the room. Not so great in summer though.
You don’t have to worry about wavelengths of blue from a white LED at all. You should be worried about the proven effects of damage to eyes and skin from UV in natural sunlight. All in all visible blue light is in many types of lights. The visible blue spectrum is 492-455 nano-meter. Here’s the chart to see how your light stacks up: http://bit.ly/1gYYAR2
My house has some of those curly light bulbs and some incandescent. My skin is extremely reactive to not only chemicals but electromagnetic whatsits. For instance I have to use a headset with cordless phones (never use cell phone) but even that turns my skin red and burning after a while. I noticed they other day while cooking directly under a curly light bulb that it was making my skin burn. I’ve always hated them anyway but didn’t know that they damaged the eyes. I spend a lot of time on the computer with projects and have noticed my eyesight diminished faster. I will look into these lenses that help with this. I want to go back to using only incandescent bulbs.
My husband was looking into LED bulbs and I am glad you have this info, I will pass it on to him.
LEDs also have a blue light used in tvs, smartphones tablets , etc which are bad for your eyes and can cause cataracts, macular degeneration and glaucoma. Not the same light that is in outdoor light which is actually good for you. Saying this while using my iPad . Am going to get eyeglasses that filter out the blue. I don’t have an led or even hd tv yet,
. I am back in the dark ages.
Thank you, Nancy, for the info re: LED from various electronic sources, and thank you, Debra, for hosting this forum. As a result of your post, I contacted my optometrist and there are now lenses available, as you said, that block the light from LED backlit computer screens. I had been noticing some serious vision changes since I bought my new computer one year ago, but hadn’t made the connection. My computer tech found a website that sells filters that fit over the computer screen that block the blue light. http://www.lowbluelights.com. If I hadn’t read about this hazard here, but had waited until my appointment on April 1, who knows how much more damage I would have sustained.
I started using a free software called F.lux at night to tone down the blue light from my monitor in an effort to sleep better. The program also allows you to set the color during the day. I’m now experimenting with a 4500K daylight setting because I’ve noticed my eyesight worsening too…figured it was age-related, but this is worth a try! To download go to https://justgetflux.com/
Try these : http://2xbulb.com/
Where to buy http://www.2xlightdirect.com/product-categories/a-line
They are incandescent bulbs which meet the efficiency requirements set by the government. The current ones give off the light intensity of a 100w bulb but use only 50watts. I haven’t looked into all of their specs but they are an alternative to look at further.
Incandescent light bulbs are being phased out, CFLs are not safe, LEDs are not either.
What should we use then to light the house?
That’s a good question. I actually need to do a whole new review of lightbulbs since everything is changing.
I actually use very little lighting in my house. None of the rooms except the bathroom have a central overhead lamp, I just use small task lights, and all of them use small bulbs, small incandescent bulbs, I might add, which are still on store shelves.
I’ll take a look at the new crop of bulbs soon. Anyone with any information on this, please chime in.
https://wattsupwiththat.com/2016/10/25/mit-traditional-incandescent-light-bulbs-reinvented-may-make-a-comeback/