Functional Eyeglasses Reduce Digital Eye Strain

A new class of functional eyewear is designed to combat eye strain caused by the blue light emitted from digital devices, including computer screens and smartphones.

The Jins Screen lenses are designed to reduce transmission of light in the 460 nm range by 25% via two pathways: coating and substrate. Certain wavelengths of blue light are reflected by the patented coating on the lenses, while others are absorbed by the substrate. A clinical study conducted at Keio University (Tokyo, Japan) in 2011 showed a significant difference in the decrease of critical flicker frequency (CFF), an index used to measure eye strain, when the glasses were worn.

Originally launched as JINS PC in Japan, over five million pairs have been sold so far. Jins (Tokyo, Japan) will start selling the Screen glasses on August 8, 2015, in the US Several different options are available; boxed Jins Screen are non-prescription, and come in eight different colors and two styles, the Square and the Wellington. Jins will also offer Screen technology on its prescription glasses, available as an extra coating on any of its 1,200 frames and lenses, for an additional cost.

“Our goal is to improve people’s lifestyles with glasses, by making them less about vision correction and more about changing the way people perceive the world around them. That is why we continue to introduce new functional eyewear like Jins Screen,” said Hitoshi Tanaka, CEO of Jin. “I hope that these innovations are only the beginning for eyewear. We’re so excited to be able to change the course of the industry and can’t wait to see what happens next.”

With the advent of blue light-emitting LEDs, illuminated screens on devices, and an increase in late-night working hours, consumers today are exposed to more artificial blue light in the 380–500 nanometer range than ever before. Although blue light is essential for the regulation of the body’s circadian rhythm, the digital generation is exposed to too much blue light, resulting in considerable eye strain.

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