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Do energy-saving lamps emit UVA and UVB light? If so, how does that light affect eyes and skin?

Like all fluorescent lamps energy-saving lamps emit small amounts of UVA and UVB light. However, these amounts do not present a risk to human health; they are within the limits that have been defined for safe exposure to UV radiation. US Health Department requirements permit 24-hour exposure to fluorescent lamp light, i.e. uninterrupted presence.

In comparison to natural daylight, the amount of UV light emitted by energy saving lamps is minimal:

UV loads presented by fluorescent lighting/daylight in a day

	UVA load	UVB load
Outdoors on a summer's day	8 W/m2	1,2 W/m2
At home (lamps with 4,000 K colour temperature)	0,0001 W/m2	0,00002 W/m2
At the office	0,05 W/m2	0,01 W/m2

Does the light emitted by energy-saving lamps affect the sleep hormone melantonin?

Energy-saving lamps are perfectly safe. They meet every legal requirement designed to protect the consumer. Nevertheless, the light they emit does affect melantonin levels – although the extent to which it does so has not yet been fully researched. Studies show that exposure to light late in the evening or during the night can slow down melantonin production. People who believe that light in the evening could be causing them difficulties in falling sleep should dim the lighting or use warm light colours. Energy-saving lamps are also available in warm-white light colours and extra-soft designs.

Does the light of energy-saving lamps prompt migrain attacks?

Energy-saving lamps are perfectly safe. They meet every legal requirement designed to protect the consumer. It is understandable that lighting conditions or light itself should be suspected of being a cause of headaches. Suspicion rests particularly on the red and blue parts of the spectrum. Energy-saving lamps contain a blue light component. People who react to it should operate lamps with a yellow filter. Migrain sufferers who believe light triggers migrain attacks should first try energy-saving lamps in a softer light colour.

Does the light of an energy-saving lamp flicker enough to trigger health problems such as epileptic fits?

The light does not flicker at all. Energy-saving lamps emit constant, flicker-free light with no stroboscopic effects. They generate this light with the help of integrated electronic ballasts (EBs), which work with a high-frequency alternating voltage between 30 and 50 Kilohertz.

Nevertheless, adverse reactions to fluorescent lamp light – e.g. poor concentration – have been reported in a small number of cases. In every instance, however, obsolete technology was to blame: fluorescent lamps with conventional (CBs) or low-loss ballasts (LLBs) operating at a frequency of 50 Hertz.

How does the light of energy-saving lamps affect people who are sensitive or allergic to light, e.g. those suffering from the autoimmune disease lupus?

People who are sensitive or allergic to light react to the intensity of light, to the spectrum of the light source (especially if it has a high blue content) or to small amounts of ultraviolet (UV) light. Energy-saving lamps emit small amounts of UV light. These amounts are minimal in comparison to the UV content of natural daylight. To guard against UV light and blue light, people who are sensitive or allergic to light should operate energy-saving lamps only with yellow filters.

Can the light of energy-saving lamps damage the retina?

The light of energy-saving lamps presents no risk at all to the retina. Studies of different types of light and their impact on the retina have shown that this light has no harmful effect. If exposed to too much light or too much brightness, the eye would anyway react by using its natural defence mechanism: it would close.

A small number of people respond particularly sensitively to blue light, which is present in the spectrum of every energy-saving lamp. They should enclose energy-saving lamps in a yellow filter to soften the light colour.

The radiation load presented by a fluorescent lamp used for general lighting is far lower than the load presented by daylight outdoors.