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A recent study found that the average person spends more than 10 hours a day in front of a screen. (Ten!) This number is worrying in itself, but when you consider that most screens emit a harmful type of blue light that can mess with your sleep, strain your eyes and disrupt your hormones, it’s worth taking a closer look at the negative effects of our digital life. Enter today’s podcast guest, Andy Mant…
Andy Mant is the founder and CEO of BON CHARGE, a company specializing in evidence-based advanced light-filtering eyewear. He started the company following a powerful personal experience — after succumbing to health and weight issues that wouldn’t resolve with the traditional dietary approach, Andy stumbled across the role that light plays in our health. By changing his exposure to light, he was able to transform his body and energy levels. And today, Andy is a leading figure in managing light to improve health and wellbeing.
My husband and I have been passionate about blue-blocking eyewear for years, and we’re thrilled that this issue is becoming more mainstream. But there’s a lot of conflicting information out there (and — unfortunately — some dodgy products). That’s one of the reasons I love Andy’s approach so much: his work is backed by hard data, and his lenses match the evidence in the academic literature.
So if you want to hear the truth about what your screentime is doing to your health, learn the simple-yet-powerful hacks to reduce your blue light exposure, and discover how to get the best sleep of your life, then pop in those earbuds and press play — this conversation is for you.
In this episode we chat about:
- His story from poor health to thriving, and why he started BON CHARGE (05:24)
- What is blue light, and the difference between good and toxic blue light (09:46)
- The common sources of blue light we’re exposed to every day (and what you can do about it)
- How blue light can impact your health, sleep, energy levels, hormones and more
- How to mitigate damage caused by blue light and the hacks you can implement today
- The truth about thyroid issues (28:56)
- Why light needs to be part of your holistic wellness puzzle (34:27)
- What to do if you’re a shift worker (37:04)
- What working at the Moulin Rouge did to my health (I’ve never talked about this publicly before) (44:28)
- The #1 book he would put in the school curriculum to transform lives (56:12)
- His powerful morning routine for a productive day (58:26)
- Plus so much more!
Episode resources:
- BON CHARGE (website)
- hello@boncharge.com (email)
- f.lux® software to make your life better (website)
- Epi-paleo Rx by Dr. Jack Kruse (Amazon)
- Restoring Vision (website)
- Follow me on Instagram (Instagram)
Thank you so much for listening to this episode. I’m so honored that you’re here and would be so grateful if you could take 2 minutes to leave me a 5-star review in iTunes or on your podcast app, that way we can inspire even more people together.
This episode is brought to you by BON CHARGE. Head to www.BONCHARGE.com now and enter the code MELISSA for 15% off your order.
P.S. Please seek advice from a qualified holistic practitioner before starting any new health practice.
Thank you, Melisa and Andy for such an informative podcast episode! I immediately ordered a pair of the Bluebox lenses and cannot wait for them to arrive at my USA home. There was such an abundance of tactics and easy to implement ways to combat the negative effects of lights we are exposed to on a daily basis that I was not aware of! I’m looking forward to seeing how my body reacts to these changes and am so thankful for the wealth of knowledge shared. I love your show and appreciate the thoughtful topics and guests you bring to your audience! xoxo
I’m so glad you loved it and got so much out of it Rachel. Please do let me know how you go with the glasses. xx
Thank you – this was another great episode and especially listened in conjunction with you sharing your night time routine. I am inspired!
I try to stick to bed by 9pm latest and wake up at 5am each day. It definitely feels better to have this regular pattern, irrespective of whether I can have a lie in or not!
As I live in the UK, it gets dark very early now, but equally sunrise isn’t until around 7.30am. I’m planning on ordering some glasses for the evening, but don’t know what is best for the mornings. I love the concept of waking with the sunrise (and during our Summer, this works) but in Winter this is more difficult.
Other than moving to Australia as Andy did (quite tempting!) would you recommend anything else we can do? We have one of those lamps in the bedroom which lights up gradually, but find most of the time we wake at 5am as a matter of course.
Thanks again,
Hey Jane, thanks for your kind words. I think if you are wearing the glasses at night and you have the lamp in the morning you are doing 2 awesome things. You could also open the curtains as soon as the sun starts to come up to get the natural light in to help your body start producing cortisol. Give those a try and let me know how you go angel. xx
Thanks so much Melissa. I contacted Andy too, and true to his word on the podcast he came straight back to me. It is brilliant how you both respond – it shows you care and your passion comes right across.
I feel so motivated to do more whenever I read/listen to you and can’t wait to try the glasses!
Let me know how you go with the glasses honey and if you have any other questions. xx
I bought a pair and I was deeply disappointed by the lack of customer service from the company and the founders. My glasses were damaged in the mail and they didn’t offer to refund let alone exchange my glasses. Be careful who you promote because some “feel-good” companies project this clean image and it’s not always what they appear. They also delete negative reviews and not giving consumer’s the right to exchange or refund within reason or leave a negative review on their website and Facebook. So everything is very controlled to upkeep this clean cut image or so called reputation at the expense of others not being able to voice their feedback and disappointment with this company. You might want to think twice before promoting them again and avoid others get burnt from unfair trading practices. You might want to read more authentic reviews here: https://www.productreview.com.au/listings/blublox
Hey Sophie, I personally have had such a great experience with them and I LOVE their product, but I am sorry to hear you haven’t had a great experience. I have passed on your feedback to them and I hope you can still see the benefits of these incredible glasses. xx
[…] about blue light and how it effects our health then I recommend listening to this podcast hosted by Melissa Ambrosini with Andy Mant, the founder and CEO of […]