Here’s the research:
Back in 2014, researchers from the journal, Pigment Cell & Melanoma Research, compared skin exposed to blue light with skin exposed to UVB rays, the type of light that gives you sunburns and skin cancer. While the skin exposed to blue light showed no signs of cancer, it did show significantly more hyperpigmentation (dark discoloration) which lasted up to 3 months.
A few years later, in 2017, researchers from the journal, Free Radical Biology & Medicine, went back in the lab to expand this blue light study on the skin. They found that exposure to the blue light found in sunlight triggered oxidation and damaged collagen and other proteins in human skin. These results suggest that blue light increases skin aging just like UVA rays do.
Some skincare companies are jumping on the blue light bandwagon by conducting their own research on blue light and skin damage. For example, the Estée Lauder Research Laboratory announced findings in early 2019 that linked blue light exposure at night to an increase of free radical production, an increase of DNA damage, and an increased production of inflammatory mediators.
So, the more time we spend on our devices, the worse off our skin might be…