County road chiefs have dismissed fears that LED streetlights could increase the risk of cancer.

Medical research on the impact of blue light suggests they can alter hormone levels, increasing the risk of prostate and breast cancer.

The claim came from the Barcelona Institute for Global Health, which carried out a study of 4,000 people aged between 20 and 85 in 11 different Spanish regions.

The study suggested that high exposure to LED lights could double the risk of prostate cancer.

But Kent County Council said there were no risks and that it took particular care over ensuring that roads were not over-lit.

The authority has approximately 120,000 street lights and two years ago began a project to convert all street lights to LED.

A statement from the council said: “The findings from this research in Spain are not solely about LED streetlights – it looks at circadian disruption and the effects of lighting in your own home.”

“Before installing the new lanterns we have made sure that all roads are designed to lighting standards.”

The statement added that KCC considered carefully ways of minimising light pollution and the impact on health.

“Before installing the new lanterns we have made sure that all roads are designed to lighting standards" - council statement

It added: “Public Health England recently produced a report into LED lighting and its effects.It concluded the science was not yet mature enough and they cannot state a threshold that should not be exceeded for local authority street lighting.”

Dr Alejandro Sánchez de Miguel, from the University of Exeter which took part in the study, said: "Humans have evolved to need light during the day and darkness at night. As towns and cities replace older lighting, we’re all exposed to higher levels of 'blue' lights, which can disrupt our biological clocks.”