Comment by flanbiscuit | Hacker News Reader

Comment by flanbiscuit | Hacker News Reader

I'm over 40 and have been wearing glasses most of my life. My prescription has mostly been stable since my late teens/early twenties but I'm definitely doing that thing now where I need to take my glasses off to read things up close (probably have Presbyopia).

> A single 3 min 670 nm morning exposure to the eye at energy levels approximately a log unit greater than found in environmental light

2 questions here:

- "exposure to the eye" - do I need to directly stare at it? or is ambient light enough?

- "a log unit greater than found in environmental light" - how much brighter is "a log unit greater", how can I measure, or know, that I'm reaching this goal

> ...significantly improved subject colour contrast thresholds for both tritan and protan axes when tested 3 h later.

Can someone explain to me what this means? Will I actually notice a difference? or is this something that will just slow down the aging process but not reverse it?

finally, found this interesting from the scienedaily article @mhb posted in this thread https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/11/211124154118.h...

> Home-based affordable eye therapies

> With a paucity of affordable deep red-light eye-therapies available, Professor Jeffery has been working for no commercial gain with Planet Lighting UK, a small company in Wales and others, with the aim of producing 670nm infra-red eye ware at an affordable cost, in contrast to some other LED devices designed to improve vision available in the US for over $20,000."

They've already released a product! https://www.eye-power.co.uk/ It's US$72, GB£45.00

I've placed my order (can't hurt right?). Total with shipping to the US for me came out to $89

I guess all of my questions are irrelevant now that I've ordered this device

> I'm definitely doing that thing now where I need to take my glasses off to read things up close (probably have Presbyopia)

Sounds like it. Assuming red light doesn't do the trick, I'll mention that I found progressive bifocals extremely unpleasant at first, but only at first. Stick with it a couple days, like I very nearly didn't, and they're fine - much more comfortable to use than I ever found the old discrete type.

Thanks for that tip! I'm due for an optometrist appointment so I'll bring those up in my next visit. I'm tired of having to remove my glasses to read things.

So was I! With a good pair of bifocals, I don't need to any more.

> They've already released a product! https://www.eye-power.co.uk/ > SAFE > Deep red light in the near infra red range has been tested by the University College London as a safe emitter

I want to try this, but that's not a lot of safety info to go on...

  >>They've already released a product! https://www.eye-power.co.uk/ It's US$72, GB£45.00

I think you've started a run. It's £54 / €64,80 / $86,40 now.

Surely even those prices are way over the top?...

  -----
  >LIGHT SOURCE Premium grade 670nm Deep Red LED cluster
  >TIMER 3 minute session timer with automatic switch off
  >BATTERY Rechargeable battery with 2 weeks between charges
  -----

Those specs sound pretty trivial for anyone with a bit of basic electronics nous to knock up. Just how expensive are these "670nm Deep Red LEDs" anyway? Most LEDs cost pennies. So, unless these are something special, I don't see where the cost comes into play.

EDIT:

A quick search finds 670nm LEDs available for £2,29 each [obviously cheaper in bulk] [0] and Amazon selling a 670nm LED torch for £5,61 [1]. I don't know enough about any of this stuff to know if all 670nm LEDs are created equal and if the ones which perform eye magic are "special" in some way. But it still seems like, if not out and out quackery, then there's definitely some cashing in going on here.

[0] https://www.mouser.co.uk/ProductDetail/Lumileds/L1SP-DRD0002...

[1] https://www.amazon.co.uk/670nM-Flashlight-Against-Deteriorat...

Given the number of scams on Amazon, I would hesitate to trust those wavelength claims.

If you check the datasheets, all the "670nm" LEDs available on Mouser appear to be 660nm LEDs that are specified with a maximum wavelength tolerance of 670nm. I think it's unlikely you'll get any 670nm LEDs if you buy them.

Medical device prices are typically nosebleed high, so a $70 pair of glasses really doesn't strike me as being expensive at all, relative to other devices, even if it only cost them $10 to make. A device mentioned in a different thread recently, that looked like it might be very helpful to me, was $4000 for about $50 (at most) of components.

Same, here...hoping if nothing else, the placebo effect might help my mother's mood/esteem. But here's hoping it actually works for us both!

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