In a study from Oregon State University, scientists found that your smartphone and laptop are aging you faster.
They found excessive blue light from these gadgets may impact basic cellular function and can accelerate the aging process.
The researchers suggest that too much screen time has been identified as a new problem that may be directly affecting basic cellular functions due to the blue light emitted by these devices.
In the study, the team found that the levels of specific metabolites – chemicals that are essential for cells to function correctly – are altered in fruit flies exposed to blue light.
The study suggests that avoidance of excessive blue light exposure may be a good anti-aging strategy.
Previous research has shown that fruit flies exposed to light ‘turn on’ stress-protective genes and that those kept in constant darkness lived longer.
This study examined the survival rate of flies kept in darkness and then moved at progressively older ages to an environment of constant blue light from light-emitting diodes, or LEDs.
The darkness-to-light transitions occurred at the ages of two, 20, 40 and 60 days, and the study involved blue light’s effect on the mitochondria (which act as a cell’s power plant, generating adenosine triphosphate, or ATP, a source of chemical energy) of the flies’ cells.
The team also compared the levels of metabolites in flies exposed to blue light for two weeks to those kept in complete darkness.
They found blue light exposure caused big differences in the levels of metabolites measured by the researchers in the cells of fly heads.
In particular, they found that the levels of the metabolite succinate were increased, but glutamate levels were lowered.
Succinate is essential for producing the fuel for the function and growth of each cell. High levels of succinate after exposure to blue light can be compared to gas being in the pump but not getting into the car.
Another important discovery was that molecules responsible for communication between neurons, such as glutamate, are at a lower level after blue light exposure.
The team says the body’s cells are operating at the suboptimal level when they are exposed to harsh blue light, and this may cause premature death of the cells due to accelerated aging.
If you care about health, please read studies about new way to increase the longevity of cancer survivors, and scientists find the cause of long COVID ‘brain fog’.
For more information about health, please see recent studies about sweeteners linked to increased cancer risk, and results showing drinking coffee this way can help prevent stroke and heart disease.
The study was conducted by Dr Jadwiga Giebultowicz et al and published in Frontiers in Aging.
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