Addison Rae launches 'blue light face mist' just a few months after another influencer had to cancel the same product due to backlash

• Addison Rae has just launched a "blue light mist" to protect skin from the blue light from screens.
• But this comes just a few months after streamer Valkyrae canceled the same product due to backlash.

TikToker Addison Rae promoted a "blue light mist" as part of her Item Beauty skincare range this week, saying it can help protect skin from potential damage from electronic screens.

However, this comes just a few months after streamer Valkyrae canceled the same product due to backlash. Experts and critics alike said there was little scientific basis for a spray to protect against the blue light emitted from screens, and there is no evidence yet that the light from screens specifically causes damage at all.

Valkyrae, whose real name is Rachell Hofstetter, launched a skincare line called RFLCT in collaboration with Ideavation Labs in October last year, saying the product contained something called BLPR, a "blue light protection factor," which worked in a similar way to SPF — protecting against the blue wavelengths rather than UV ones, and a rice extract that "protects against blue light pollution."

However, the line was branded a "scam" by some critics, who noted the inconclusive research and determined it a cash grab. Two weeks later, RFLCT ceased to exist. On its website, a message stated "While we believe in the formulations created, after further reflection, have decided to move forward on new paths, effectively terminating the RFLCT brand."

Rae launchd her mist, called Screen Break, three months later, claiming it is "clinically proven to protect skin from screen-emitted HEV blue light and daily pollution." It contains many similar ingredients as Hofstetter's RFLCT spray did — mostly oils, cleansers, and plant extracts.

When Hofstetter saw the advert for Screen Break, she tweeted "HOW IS THIS REAL?!"

"I wouldn't be surprised if it's the same company," she said.

Insider's Canela López reported that experts were skeptical about whether light from phone and laptops caused any damage to skin as studies have been inconclusive. Dermatologist with Schweiger Dermatology Group in Philadelphia, Dr. Michele Farber, told López that while research has shown increased inflammation and degradation of collagen from blue light exposure, scientists are still looking into whether the light emitted from screens is enough to cause similar damage.

Most of the health concerns regarding overexposure to blue light is related to eye strain and vision problems, not skin, according to dermatologist Dr. Adam Mamelak.

"It can also affect circadian rhythms and potentially disrupt sleep patterns," he told Insider. "This is why many don't recommend looking at screens late at night or while in bed."

Circadian neuroscientist Professor Russell Foster, the director of Sleep & Circadian Neuroscience Institute, told Insider a blue light mist was "complete nonsense," and claiming it helps prevent against damage was "misleading."

Dermatologist Dr. Beth Goldstein, the founder of Central Dermatology and Get Mr. skincare, told Insider that there are ways to test for blue light protection, but "they are not standardized and widely recognized."

"Therefore making claims without documenting some type of attempt to validate your claims, while difficult, can be done," she said.

Spectrometers can be used to see which wavelength of light a product absorbs, and cells can be tested to see levels of certain enxymes relating to antioxidant exposure. But overall, there is no "state of the art" standard testing yet, Goldstein said.

From the Screen Break ingredients list, the only one that seems specifically tailored to blue-light protection is withania somnifera root extract, according to Goldstein. Niacinamide and mentha arvensis leaf oil may have potential antioxidant properties, she added, while dandelion root extract can protect against UVB waves.

Overall, though, the degree of blue light protection is "unclear," Goldstein said, as the concentrations of the the ingredients is not stated. There is also no mention of physical blockers or light filters in the list, such as minerals including zinc oxide, titanium dioxide, or iron oxides in their formula, she added.

Insider has reached out to representatives for Hofstetter and Rae for comment.