Does the light of street lamps increase the risk of cancer?

How does blue light from street lamps affect the body??

Do you live near street lamps? If so, these lamps could increase their risk of developing cancer. Researchers now found that blue light from streetlights increases the risk of breast and prostate cancer.

The researchers at the Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal) found in their current study that so-called blue light from street lamps increases the risk of cancer. The physicians published the results of their study in the English-language journal "Environmental Health Perspectives".

More and more street lighting is being converted to LED lamps. However, this causes an increased risk of cancer. (Image: Haz / fotolia.com)

Street lamps increase the risk of breast and prostate cancer

The study, conducted by an international team led by the Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal), found a link between nocturnal blue light and an increased risk of breast and prostate cancer. Blue light is an area of ​​the visible light spectrum that is emitted by most white LEDs and many tablet and phone screens, the experts explain.

Night shift work increases cancer risk?

The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) of the World Health Organization (WHO) has already classified night shift work in humans as likely to cause cancer. There is evidence of an association between artificial nocturnal light exposure, circadian rhythm disturbance and breast and prostate cancer, the researchers explain. The current study aimed to determine whether nighttime urban light irradiation could affect the development of these two cancers, adds study author Professor Manolis Kogevinas of the Barcelona Institute for Global Health.

Study included data from more than 4,000 subjects

The study evaluated the medical and epidemiological data of more than 4,000 people between the ages of 20 and 85 years. The indoor exposure to artificial light was determined using personal questionnaires, while the outdoor artificial lighting was analyzed using night shots of the astronauts aboard the International Space Station for Madrid and Barcelona.

Blue light increases the risk of cancer

The results obtained for both cities indicate that subjects exposed to higher levels of blue light had a 1.5- and 2-fold higher risk of developing breast and prostate cancer, respectively, compared to less exposed populations the medics.

Further research is needed

"Given the ubiquity of artificial light at night, it is a public health issue to decide whether the risk of cancer is rising or not," says study author Ariadna García of the Barcelona Institute for Global Health in a press release. "At this point, further studies should include more individual data using, for example, light sensors that allow indoor light levels to be measured. It would also be important to do this kind of research on young people who use blue light emitting screens, "adds the expert. At present, astronauts' footage on the space station is the only way to scale the color of outdoor lighting and detect the spread of blue, light-emitting white LEDs in our cities, the researchers say. (As)