Why did surgical scrubs go from white to almost exclusively green and blue in the early 20th century?

The fact is that green and blue are the opposite of red on the spectrum of visual light, and during an operation, a surgeon is nearly always focusing on red colors. Green is well-suited to help doctors see better in the operating room because it is the exact opposite of red on the color wheel.

Because of this, the green and blue colors not only help to improve a surgeon’s visual acuity but also make them more sensitive to different shades of red. Consequently, it helps them pay greater attention to the nuances of human anatomy, which significantly reduces the likelihood that they’ll make a mistake during an operation.