caboy The FDA may not be able to fix everything alone, but their collection of data is a critical first step, and I’m very encouraged to have talked with someone there who says they really do want to look into this if they start to get reports from us.
I come from a science research background - PhD in Human Genetics and Molecular Biology - and I think there’s a critical flaw in the system that allows light-producing devices to be released to the public without any health testing. This would never happen today if it were a drug that’s a chemical. And it is also completely contrary to modern ethical and regulatory standards for medical research to experiment on humans without their informed consent, stringent safety protocols, and plans for how data will be collected and safety monitored. The lighting/computer industries have gotten away with the mass release of light-producing devices that can impact human health without the informed consent of the public, without safety controls, and without any plan to monitor the health impact. While manufacturers are already obliged to report health issues with their devices to the FDA, they aren’t doing so yet.
Doctors won’t “know” anything about LED sensitivities until there are studies in the medical literature that can be found by searching PubMed. Scientists won’t start to research this until there’s funding, in the US likely coming from the NIH, NSF, or maybe DOD. And those funding agencies won’t support the research until grant applications can justify the need for the research. Us getting our reports in to the FDA can provide data that can be used by scientific researchers to justify their grant proposals.
Additionally, US legislators might task the FDA with taking a more active role in vetting the safety of light-producing devices and technologies if there’s data from us to support that position. The FDA itself might be able to take some initial steps within their current regulatory mandate - if they receive data from us to justify the need.
I think in the very long run, there will be increased recognition that some types/patterns of visible light can harm human health and the current regulatory loopholes will be closed. Our data is needed to start this process.