Partial blue light blocking glasses at night advanced sleep phase and reduced daytime irritability, disruptive behavior and improved morning mood, but did not alter salivary melatonin secretion in Japanese male schoolchildren

Abstract

In modern society, delayed sleep patterns among schoolchildren present challenges to academic attendance and performance. The impact of nighttime light exposure, especially blue wavelength light, on sleep delay has long been acknowledged. We investigated the effects of using partial blue light blocking glasses (JINS Screen Lens Heavy [40% cut]) on salivary melatonin levels, sleep patterns, sleep circadian phase, and daytime behavior in 39 male schoolchildren aged 10–12 who regularly wear glasses for myopia. Participants alternated between blue light blocking and standard clear lens glasses, both providing vision correction, for three hours before their habitual bedtime. The study was conducted over five weeks using a crossover design with two-week glasses-wearing sessions and a one-week washout interval between conditions. While blue light blocking glasses did not influence salivary melatonin levels, they significantly advanced the sleep phase (bedtime: 22.03 ± 0.08h vs. 22.13 ± 0.09h, p = 0.040, sleep onset: 22.26 ± 0.08h vs. 22.36 ± 0.10h, p = 0.041). The effects were more pronounced in the second week and accompanied by reduced irritability and disruptive behavior during daytime. Our results suggest that wearing blue light blocking glasses before bedtime may advance the sleep phase and improve daytime behavior in schoolchildren under real-world living conditions, warranting further mechanistic investigation.