If you spend hours working under LED lighting and find your eyes feeling fatigued or your color perception dull, you’re not alone — and surprisingly, the solution might be as simple as a lightbulb.
A new study from Glen Jeffery’s lab at University College London (UCL) reveals that exposure to incandescent lighting, even for a short time, can significantly improve visual performance in people who work in LED-lit environments.
The Problem with LED Lighting
Most modern offices and homes use LED lighting. While energy-efficient, these lights emit a narrow band of visible light, lacking the infrared wavelengths present in traditional incandescent bulbs. That’s a big deal for your retina, especially the cones responsible for color perception.
Why? The retina — particularly the cones — are packed with mitochondria, the tiny powerhouses of cells that need energy (ATP) to function well. Without adequate infrared light, the mitochondria in your eyes may not perform optimally, leading to worse color discrimination and possibly increased visual strain.
What the Study Found
In the study, 22 UCL employees who had worked under LED lighting for over two years were split into two groups:
- Control group: No change in lighting
- Intervention group: Given a 60-watt incandescent lamp on their desks for 2 weeks
Researchers then tested their color vision using standard assessments of red (protan) and blue (tritan) color sensitivity.
Results:
- The control group showed no change in color vision.
- The incandescent lamp group showed a marked improvement in color discrimination — across both young and older participants.
- Even more interestingly, this improvement persisted 4 to 6 weeks after the lamps were removed.
Why Does Infrared Light Help?
Infrared light (which is invisible to the human eye but detectable through special cameras) penetrates deeply into tissue and appears to enhance mitochondrial function. With better energy production, cone cells in the retina operate more efficiently — leading to sharper and more accurate color vision.
Incandescent bulbs naturally emit broad-spectrum light, including the beneficial infrared wavelengths missing from LEDs.
What You Can Do
While lighting regulations may limit the future of incandescent bulbs (new restrictions will narrow the spectrum of LED lighting even more by 2028), there’s still a simple takeaway:
Placing a 60W incandescent bulb on your desk and using it during work hours can help reduce eye strain and improve color vision in LED-dominant environments.
This small environmental tweak can make a surprising difference to your visual health — especially for those spending hours under artificial lighting.
Final Thoughts
This study is groundbreaking for three reasons:
- It involved real-world office settings, not tightly controlled lab environments
- It showed improvements in both red and blue cone performance.
- The benefits persisted weeks after the intervention stopped.
It’s an exciting example of how environmental lighting can impact our biology, and how small, low-tech interventions can offer big benefits.
LINKS / REFERENCES:
Vitamin D Expert: The Fastest Way To Dementia & The Big Lie About Sunlight! (Diary of a CEO) | 
• Vitamin D Expert: The Fastest Way To Demen…
LED lighting undermines visual performance (ResearchGate) | https://www.researchgate.net/publicat…
New Department of Energy Rule That Will Change Your Light Bulbs (MedCram) | • New Department of Energy Rule That Will Ch…