The number of so-called ‘smart’ gadgets is growing at an alarming rate it seems. Industry keen to take advantage of our thirst for gimmicks and trinkets.
During a recent visit to my local electronics store I was fascinated by a smart light bulb which changes colour by means of some wireless technology. So this thing can be set to change colour several times during an evening with a view to …. what I’m not exactly sure. Increasing the toxic load of the environment, definitely, messing with your head, possibly.
Don’t get me wrong. I am not against having a bit of fun. I did the whole coloured light bulb thing when I was a kid. But that is the point – these new smart light bulbs are aimed at adults. And we should, and need, to know better.
It’s not just about the radio frequency pollution from unnecessary wireless signals, though that is all to easy to forget. We can’t see it so how can it hurt us? It is also to do with our primitive ‘cave-man’ brains, evolved to respond to blue light in the mornings and yellow in the evening. In fact some of the sensitive systems in the body need these changes in light to trigger their functions. One example is how exposure to blue light in the evenings can disrupt sleep. We actually need soft candlelight! Or at least an electrical equivalent.
But caution needs to be exercised here too, particularly for those of us with electrosensitivity. Halogen light bulbs can give out quite high magnetic fields because of the way they are constructed. If there is one of these bulbs in an unearthed bedside lamp there will be quite high electrical fields too. Result – a high chance of sleep disruption.
There are suppliers of traditional incandescent bulbs on the internet and having just changed my bedside lamps to these I am enjoying the soft warm glow these are giving off and beginning to forget the harsh light the old halogen bulbs produced.
As the old adage says, there is a time and place for everything, including coloured light bulbs. But these days, with so many gadgets on sale and the clever marketing that goes with them, we need to think carefully about what that may be.