LG Display has put an announcement to say that its OLED TV panels have been confirmed to help maintain healthy sleep patterns. Apparently, a clinical study conducted with researchers from Kookmin University in Seoul measured the sleep-inducing hormone melatonin in 40 adult men and women over two weeks, comparing those watching content on LCD and OLED TVs. The study found that melatonin secretion in the LCD TV group fell by 2.7% over two hours, while it increased by 8.1% in the OLED TV group.
Melatonin is a hormone produced by the pineal gland in response to darkness. It helps regulate your sleep-wake cycle, also known as your circadian rhythm. Melatonin levels rise in the evening and stay elevated throughout the night, making you feel sleepy. As dawn approaches and light hits your eyes, melatonin production starts to decrease, making you feel more alert and awake.The human body requires melatonin to rise in the evening to prepare for sleep, but blue light from displays can disrupt this process.
LCD panels emit 70-80% blue light due to their reliance on a strong backlight, whereas LG Display’s OLED panels emit only 36% blue light because they are self-emissive and do not use a backlight. Professor Kim Chang-wook, who led the research, stated that OLED TVs minimize the negative impact on melatonin secretion and help maintain healthy sleep patterns by activating the parasympathetic nerves responsible for comfort. Last year, LG Display’s OLED TV and monitor panels were certified as Circadian Friendly by TÜV Rheinland. LG Display claims its OLED panels have the lowest blue light emissions among all TV panels and no screen flicker, earning them Eyesafe”certification from Eyesafe and TÜV Rheinland, as well as Flicker Free and Discomfort Glare Free verifications from UL.
You could also say that there are plenty of other ways that TVs, LCD or otherwise, can put you to sleep but for now, score one to LG for claiming the snooze friendly crown.
