Guarding against blue light: ways to increase your lutein intake

Blue light is everywhere, and it’s unavoidable. This is the message from Kemin; makers of FloraGLO lutein, in their infographic Beat the Blue ™ detailing the issue of harmful blue light.



The infographic demonstrates that blue light is everywhere, and its prevalence in our daily lives is cause for concern. Nearly every source of natural or artificial light emits harmful blue light, and our increased reliance on digital devices further increases our exposure.

How can we protect our eyes against blue light damage? Lutein can play a key role here and there are several ways to increase your intake, which can easily be incorporated into your daily routine.

The problem of blue light

In the infographic Kemin demonstrate how prolific blue light is – our eyes are exposed to it daily from the sun, artificial lighting and digital devices. The effect of digital devices is most concerning, as this has significantly increased the amount of blue light we are exposed to compared with a decade or two ago. For example, 60% of Americans use digital devices for five hours or more a day, with 70% of Americans using two or more devices at the same time.

Blue light causes short and long-term effects, so it quickly becomes a problem for many people. Digital eye strain is the most common short-term effect, causing headaches, blurred vision and eye fatigue. Longer term effects include retinal damage, age-related macular degeneration and reduced visual acuity – all pose a risk of significant sight loss.

Protect against blue light daily

Lutein and zeaxanthin are the only nutrients deposited by the body into your eyes that filter harmful blue light, but it is not produced naturally. How can you access lutein and keep your levels topped up daily?

  • Pay attention to your diet. Leafy green vegetables like spinach, kale and broccoli have high levels of lutein. Eggs are also a good source of lutein, as is corn.
  • Supplement your diet. Most people only receive around 1-2mg of lutein via their diet, and you need around 10mg each day to protect your eyes. Supplementation like FloraGLO lutein provides all the nutrients you need in a daily tablet, which fits in with your daily routine.



Eye health conditions are often concerns for older people, but our increasing exposure to blue light means young and old are now at-risk of eye health issues. You should pay attention to your lutein levels throughout your life if you are to preserve useful sight as long as possible. Optimising your lutein intake alongside regular eye screenings will contribute to healthier retinas and early diagnosis should any problems occur.

We still don’t understand fully what the long-term damage blue light does. What will decades of overexposure do to eyes? As a result, it is best to take preventative measures now. Alongside regular eye checks and screening, you should limit your exposure to blue light (particularly from digital devices), improve your diet and consider taking regular lutein supplements.

View the full ‘Beat the Blue™’ infographic on the Kemin website.

Want to learn more about blue light? Read our blog post – ‘blue light – what are the risks (and benefits) to our health?’