A study by Beijing University showed that light sources with full spectral composition caused significantly less damage to the retina and photoreceptors compared to conventional LEDs.

Adding a red spectral component to the light source helps protect the retina from damage by improving mitochondrial function, reducing oxidative stress and autophagy in photoreceptors.

In the experiment, red light of 670 nm wavelength increased mitochondrial membrane potential, accelerated mitochondrial metabolism, and alleviated mitochondrial permeabilisation and receptor autophagy. This implies that the red component in the illumination results in less light damage to the retina.

Multi-spectral low-level LED (LLL) lighting showed less damage to the rat retina than conventional white LEDs

As part of the research, the researchers developed a new ‘low-risk light source’ by adding cyan and red light components to conventional white LEDs. This light source had the same correlated colour temperature (CCT) as a conventional white LED, but resulted in significantly less damage to retinal and photoreceptor function in rats, despite emitting twice the luminance. It has thereby been confirmed that the red component provides a protective effect and the cyan component may have a ‘spectral opposition’ effect that protects the retina by mitigating the attenuation of melatonin associated with light damage.