Experiencing eye strain
Eye strain is caused by intensely focusing your eyes during a task such as long periods of driving or reading, computer and cell phone use, and extended periods of detail work. These are some common symptoms of digital eye strain:
- Watering of the eyes or dry eyes
- Blurred vision … not blinking enough
- Headaches
- Eyes that burn
Steps you can take to alleviate eye strain
This is not an extensive list but does include some simple steps that will help avoid the painful effects of eye strain.
- When reading, every 20 minutes take a 20 second break and look into the distance to relax your eyes
- Blink frequently … staring at a computer screen can cause irritation and redness
- See your optometrist … maybe a prescription for a computer or reading glasses may be necessary
- Keep your computer monitor bright … contrary to common belief, a brighter screen doesn’t hurt your eyes, it helps. It reduces the flicker rate of the computer, helping reduce the risk of eye strain
- Using an incandescent light and avoid high intensity lamps which will cast shadows and cause glare
- Properly position your monitor … optimally your computer screen should be 4 to 5 inches below eye level and roughly 20 to 28 inches from your eyes. An adjustable chair may also be helpful.
- Using a higher resolution produces a crisper image reducing eye strain
- Minimizing glare on your screen … installing an anti-glare screen, adding an antireflective coating to your eyeglass lenses, or a blue light filter on either your screen or lenses will help to alleviate glare
Is your eye permanently damaged due to eye strain?
At this time there is no evidence that long term damage is done to your eyes due to eye strain, but why suffer discomfort and fatigue when the solutions to avoid such a condition exist.