Is the blue light on your cellphone aging your skin

DURHAM, N.C. (WTVD) -- The skin is the body's largest organ, so it makes sense to protect it. But could the electronic devices we use every day be damaging our skin?

Dr. Julie Woodward, the Chief of Oculofacial Surgery at Duke University, said that the blue light emitted from cellphones can have a damaging effect on the skin.

"When it comes to blue light, they've (researchers) only discovered that the blue light can cause darker pigmentation in patients that are already dark and it can cause some photoaging," Woodward said.

Photoaging is damage to the skin like wrinkles and brown spots.

So, how much blue light exposure is needed before the damage becomes noticeable?

"If you look at a cellphone ... it would take constant looking at the phone for an entire month to reach that same level of radiation," Woodward explained, refercing the radiation that a person would get on an average day in North Carolina.

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Woodward said there are solutions to protecting your skin from the blue lights on cellphones and other electronic devices.

She suggested eating a diet rich in antioxidants. She also said that sunscreen does not filter out blue light but said people can use a topical cream with a combination of Vitamin C, E, and Ferulic Acid.

Woodward said the biggest contributing factor to your skin's health could be how much screen time you have before bed.

"We know that our skin looks bad if we don't get a good night's sleep. We look tired, our skin looks sallow and dry. So the lack of sleep could be affected by the blue light into the retina into the eye."

Woodward also stressed the importance of eye care. She said buying glasses to filter out blue light is a good option, but there could be a simpler trick.

Many software updates offer an option that filters out some of the blue light.

On the iPhone, go to settings, select display and brightness and then select night shift.

Users will be able to control the temperature setting on their phone.