This has always been true for some people, but not for most people. If you have an inclination toward epilepsy, or certain other conditions, then flourescent bulbs can trigger it.
I have an English cousin who can’t dine by candlelight because he might go into a fit. And I had a colleague in the office who had to turn off the flourescent lights and plug in incandescent lights instead.
But those are the exceptional cases. We have had compact flourescent lights all over our house for years, and it saves a ton on the electric bill. You just have to get the right make, since some brands are indeed horrible.
>>You just have to get the right make, since some brands are indeed horrible.<<
I think that’s the key right there.
One disadvantage to CFLs occurs when the electronics in the bulb fail long before the claimed life. The claimed savings in power consumption vs. bulb cost go out the window when the CFL fails prematurely.
In order to save a penny here and there, CFL builders (who are predominantly in China) would skimp on the circuit design and/or the components, resulting on bulbs that would fail long before their claimed lifetimes, due to heat, high average line voltages, and/or transients.
From my own experience, I think that the longevity has gotten better in recent years, however.