well your half right. Most of the leds out there have no significant UV light in them (UVA UVB, UVC). Most of them have blues above 400nm.
On the other hand the intense bands of relatively monchromatic light fools the irises and are VERY dangerous.
I keep a pair of polarized wrap around safety glasses with some blue metallic reflection. works great a little bit of color correction, UV protection (I have a bunch of T5s with actinic blues) and dims enough I can briefly look at the leds and T5 tubes without issue). On top of that they also double as safety glasses.
I am full on right actually, I have built some LED fixtures and have been warned by the vendors about the 430nm LED UV lights that I was buying, this is the same NM of light dentists use to cure and kill bacteria while doing a filling, and ontop of the rig they shove in your mouth with the purple 430nm LED is a shield to protect the assitant from the rays.
If you think you are safe you havent done enough reading and you are fooling yourself, you will feel no pain when you damage your eyes, even a welding flash doesn't burn till much later as the mucous membrane has been burnt off the eye.
Better safe than sorry, any light you eye sees especially blues affect your eyesight.
http://www.electronicsweekly.com/articles/08/11/2012/54949/ensuring-safety-in-led-lighting.htm
Blue light hazard
Without UV, blue is left as the most destructive part of the visible spectrum, causing damage to the retina through photo-chemical action rather than heating.
And occasionally damaging UV reaches the retina as well - this happens in young children and those whose eye lens has been removed for medical reasons, for example.
Our faces owe something to the power of blue light.
"We have evolved to be protected from sun exposure when sun is high in the sky - it is why we have eye brows and brow ridges. When the sun is low, it tends to be redder," Dr John O'Hagan, head of the UK Health Protection Agency's laser and optical radiation dosimetry group told Electronics Weekly.
The science of blue light damage at high intensity is well studied, and it is known to be cumulative over durations up to hours.
The International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP) is a body which gathers scientific evidence as it is revealed and, through expert review, produces best-practice guidelines. As such, its guidelines are well respected and are the basis for global standards in light safety.
ICNIRP suggests the "use of hats, eye protectors, clothing, and sun-shading structures" to protect the eyes and skin from the harmful effects of sunlight UV.
Long-term eye heath
There is a possibility that levels of blue light exposure which do not cause damage in hours, may cause cumulative damage over years, and a link has been proposed to age-related macular degeneration (AMD).
This said, there is yet no strong evidence either way on blue light and AMD.
"Recent studies suggest that the blue end of the light spectrum may also contribute to retinal damage and possibly lead to AMD," said the
American Macular Degeneration Foundation. "The retina can be harmed by high-energy visible radiation of blue/violet light that penetrates the macular pigment found in the eye. According to a study by The Schepens Eye Institute, a low density of macular pigment may represent a risk factor for AMD by permitting greater blue light damage."
The eye is particularly vulnerable between 420 and 470nm, which is exactly the range the InGaN die of 'white' lighting LEDs emit: blue indigo and violet.
This is true of lighting LEDs from all manufacturers, and it is also true of many fluorescent lights and HID (high-intensity discharge) lamps.
Good LED makers do it right
Responsible lighting LED makers issue information on the safe use of their devices.
For example: LED maker Cree has safety tested its LEDs, including the type that has most potential to do damage the retina - blue power LEDs.
According to
Cree's LED eye safety document: "The results of this testing show significant health risks from some of Cree’s visible light LED lamps when viewed without diffusers or secondary optical devices. These risks warrant an advisory notice to indicate the potential for eye injury caused by prolonged viewing of blue light from these devices. To date, the testing shows that Cree’s blue and royal blue LEDs (450-485 nm dominant wavelengths) pose a higher potential eye safety hazard than its white LEDs. Other colours of LED lamps, such as green and red LED lamps, do not pose as significant of an eye safety risk."
At a recent LEDs workshop in the UK, Andrew Dennington of Carclo Technical Plastics, presenting a series of optical design tips, also included a word of caution; “The latest generation of LEDs is not safe, and someone will have their eyes damaged by a high-power LED product,” he warned. “Check your products to the relevant standards.”
One ongoing issue with LED safety is the problem of whether to classify an LED as a laser or a lamp – both have merits and both present problems, depending on how the LEDs are arranged and used.
SO....
Where your safety glasses.
Peace