How To Combat Digital Eye Strain
How To Combat Digital Eye Strain
Causes of Digital Eye Strain
Many people who use computers complain of eye strain. Looking at a monitor for a long time can strain your eyes or can make any other problems you are having with your eyes seem more noticeable. Digital eye strain can be caused by a multitude of different factors including improper lighting and poor resolution just to name a few. The symptoms can also be quite varied and can include: Sore, tired, burning or itching eyes, Watery or dry eyes, Blurred or double vision, Headaches and increased sensitivity to light. Below you will find our 5 step guide that will hopefully help you combat this problem.
- Clean That Screen! A dust-free, smudge-free screen helps reduce glare.
We are all guilty of letting our screens get a bit grubby from time. Cleaning your screen regularly will not only help you to see the display in terms of a clearer resolution . It will also help reduce the amount of light reflecting off your screen and bouncing into your eyes in a non uniform manner. Also consider adding an anti reflective coating to your monitor. This will help you minimize the amount of light reflecting off your screen.
- Use proper lighting.
Use dim lighting to minimize the amount of light competing with your devices screen. Computer Eye strain can be caused by excessively bright lighting coming from a bright light source. This can be caused by both strong interior lighting our sunlight coming in through a window.
When it comes to sunlight try closing closing blinds. If this is not possible try to position your computer screen so that the sun comes from your side rather than directly behind or in front of you. This will help reduce the amount of light your computer screen will have to compete with and will help your eyes focus.
- Exercise your eyes.
Focus fatigue is a huge problem. Your eyes naturally get tired if they are focusing on the same thing for too long. To combat this its recommended that Every 20 minutes, take a 20-second break and look at something 20 feet away. Even short breaks make a huge difference. This is called the “20-20-20 rule”. On top of this it is also recommended that you take short breaks every hour. This will not only help with digital eye strain but also help with loosening out your back and neck.
- Wear computer glasses.
Computer glasses are are becoming increasingly popular solution for combatting the potentially damaging effects of digital eye strain. Certain computer glasses can serve different purposes depending on your visual needs, some computer glasses have a modified lens that relaxes the eye while providing a large field of view, while other computer glasses feature an anti-reflective coating that helps combat eye strain by softening the glare from harsh indoor and outdoor lighting and improving contrast. Some computer glasses even feature lenses that selectively absorb harmful blue light, preventing it from entering the cornea and causing eye damage. Computer glasses tend to include a variation of these features depending in what your eyes need.
- Reduce screen time
Overall the best thing you can do for you vision is reduce your overall screen time as not staring at a screen all day is probably the most effective way of combatting digital eye strain
Overall excessive screen time can have harmful effects on your health; from hindered sleep cycles to headaches, staring at a computer or phone all day will eventually take its toll on your vision. While reduced screen time may not be an option for you the steps above will at the very lest assist in reducing the load on your eyes.