A few weeks ago, the internet freaked out after it learned that the switch from halogen to LED bulbs messed with a bunch of people’s menstrual cycles. Of course, this wasn’t intentional — it was just a strange side effect of the swap to the cheaper, more efficient LED.

But did we really switch to LEDs because they’re cheaper and more efficient? Or is there something else at play here?

I'm a single issue voter, I want the warm lights back.

Streetlights are too blue. Headlights are too bright. It's a crime against nature and God.

We need to demand 2800K or below color balance for all outdoor lights. Some cities regulate 3000k max, that's still too damn blue. pic.twitter.com/9mKnrdYUH3

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— Sterling Crispin ️ (@sterlingcrispin) November 10, 2025

Floating around the internet is a new idea about the switch: that the government intentionally switched the bulbs from yellow incandescents to white LEDs to put us on edge all the time. The bulbs are making me edge!

So, what happened? Basically, when LEDs came out, the standard color for them was around 4000K. This is a color marketers call “Cool White.” It’s also a color that makes everything around you look like a horror movie.

In the years since, they’ve figured out how to make LEDs in nicer, warmer colors. However, cool white often remains the standard. Why?

If you talk to scientists, they’ll tell you that cool white LEDs are more efficient and that they produce more light. But if you talk to people online, you’ll “learn” that it was a conscious effort to stress us out.

There’s an entire psychology and purposeful methodology for why this was done and it will disturb you. https://t.co/S7bYIqRIW9

— Mack (@kenzietuff) November 12, 2025

“The body is programmed to stay awake when it sees blue light, keeps us off circadian rhythm and makes us constantly stressed and anxious,” explained a user on X.

Is this true? Yes, blue light can mess with your circadian rhythm, affecting your sleep and thus stressing you out. However, if you’re looking for a deeper plot here, the answer really is, as it always is, “some people wanted to save money.”