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Is Dark Mode Better For Your Eyes?

Arief Salim

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February 21, 2022

• Device use management
• Parenting

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Is Dark Mode Better For Your Eyes? Dark mode purportedly reduces glare and blue light on your digital screens, making it a better option for your eyes as compared to light mode. That being said, dark mode may lead to more vision issues in some cases. We explore the case further below.

What is dark mode?

Dark mode (or dark theme) is a setting that your digital device might have. Dark mode works by revealing a reversed colour scheme, that is, light-colored text and icons on a dark background. Most digital devices have light mode as the default mode, whereby dark text is juxtaposed with a light background.

You may adjust your device to dark mode by going to your device’s display setting and switching the setting accordingly. However, if your phone (or its operating system) is not updated, you may not be able to switch it to dark mode. Interestingly, initial personal computers with monochrome monitors (that used phosphorus that appeared dark on the screen) actually had dark mode as their default instead of light mode.

What are the advantages of dark mode?

There are many benefits that dark mode provides, such as decreased blue light exposure, glare as well as a prolonged battery life.

Your phone’s battery life can be prolonged by up to 30% in dark mode. This means you would not have to charge your phone as often. Moreover, with research proving that blue light can interfere with sleep cycles, having your device in dark mode would mean that your exposure to blue light would be reduced, enabling you a better chance of falling asleep easily and getting sufficient rest. Using dark mode will reduce screen glare for comfortable viewing, especially if you are reading from your screen in dim settings.

Is dark mode better for your eyes?

While dark mode has a lot of advantages, it may not necessarily be better for your eyes. Your pupils would have to dilate when your device is in dark mode, making it more challenging to focus on whatever is on the screen. Your vision blurs when your pupils dilate. Under bright light, your pupils constrict and thus your vision sharpens, enabling you to focus better. Hence, you may find it tough to view screen details in dark mode.

If you have myopia or astigmatism, you may also encounter halation. Halation happens when light spreads past a certain boundary, resulting in a blurred image.

Using dark mode increases the risks of halation, so if you have vision issues, a dimmed light mode or blue-light-filtering mode instead of dark mode may be preferable.

Consult your doctor for any eye issues

Regardless of what mode you use to view your digital device, it is advisable to see your eye health professional for regular eye examinations to maintain eye health and to correct any vision problems. Book your next eye appointment using planoEyecheck.

References

All About Vision. 2022. [online] Available at: <https://www.allaboutvision.com/digital-eye-strain/is-dark-mode-better-for-eyes/> [Accessed 27 January 2022].