Abstract
BackgroundIt has been assumed that light with a higher irradiance of pulsed blue light has a much greater influence than that of light with a lower irradiance of steady blue light, although they have the same multiplication value of irradiance and duration. We examined the non-visual physiological effects of blue pulsed light, and determined whether it is sensed visually as being blue.FindingsSeven young male volunteers participated in the study. We placed a circular screen (diameter 500 mm) in front of the participants and irradiated it using blue and/or white light-emitting diodes (LEDs), and we used halogen lamps as a standard illuminant. We applied three steady light conditions of white LED (F0), blue LED + white LED (F10), and blue LED (F100), and a blue pulsed light condition of a 100-μs pulse width with a 10% duty ratio (P10). The irradiance of all four conditions at the participant's eye level was almost the same, at around 12 μW/cm2. We measured their pupil diameter, recorded electroencephalogram readings and Kwansei Gakuin Sleepiness Scale score, and collected subjective evaluations. The subjective bluish score under the F100 condition was significantly higher than those under other conditions. Even under the P10 condition with a 10% duty ratio of blue pulsed light and the F10 condition, the participant did not perceive the light as bluish. Pupillary light response under the P10 pulsed light condition was significantly greater than under the F10 condition, even though the two conditions had equal blue light components.ConclusionsThe pupil constricted under the blue pulsed light condition, indicating a non-visual effect of the lighting, even though the participants did not perceive the light as bluish.
Highlights
Quite a few studies in the field of physiological anthropology have focused on the non-visual effects of illumination on humans [1,2,3,4,5], with findings such as increased sympathetic nervous activity and improved arousal level, which are generally seen in response to high-color-temperature illumination that contains a rich short-wavelength light.In 2002, intrinsically photosensitive retinal ganglion cells, a novel type of photoreceptor cell, were found in the mammalian retina [6]
Researchers found that Intrinsically photosensitive retinal ganglion cell (ipRGC) affect the suprachiasmatic nucleus and act as the primary photoreceptor for non-visual effects, such
It was reported that the contribution of ipRGCs to the pupillary light response was greater at a higher irradiance, with the role of the rods being more dominant at a lower irradiance level [9,12,14]
Summary
Quite a few studies in the field of physiological anthropology have focused on the non-visual effects of illumination on humans [1,2,3,4,5], with findings such as increased sympathetic nervous activity and improved arousal level, which are generally seen in response to high-color-temperature illumination that contains a rich short-wavelength light.In 2002, intrinsically photosensitive retinal ganglion cells (ipRGCs), a novel type of photoreceptor cell, were found in the mammalian retina [6]. It was reported that the contribution of ipRGCs to the pupillary light response was greater at a higher irradiance, with the role of the rods being more dominant at a lower irradiance level [9,12,14]. Because of this characteristic of ipRGCs, it was assumed that the light condition with higher irradiance of pulsed blue light had a much greater influence than that of the light condition with lower irradiance of steady blue light, the two conditions had the same multiplication value of irradiance and 1000 mm cm Halogen Lumps. We examined the non-visual physiological effects of blue pulsed light, and determined whether it is sensed visually as being blue
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