There are many afflictions we can get when working at a computer, such as headaches, neck pain, wrist pain, back pain, as well as general stress and fatigue, but for many, it’s eye strain which is the worse of them all. Easy to get but hard to eliminate, eye strain can ruin our day and make us feel like we can’t work anymore. However, it doesn’t need to be this bad, as preventing eye strain is fairly simple.
Dry Eyes
It’s said that a typical adult blinks 18 times a minute, yet will only blink around 9 times when working at a computer screen. This could be because we’re focused too hard on the information on the screen and just forget to blink, but it’s important not to overlook doing this. Blinking lubricates our eyes and keeps them from getting dry, which means the more we forget, the more irritated they’ll be. Remembering to blink more often and using eye drops helps keep the eyes moist when working at a screen.
Blue Light from Screens
Digital color screens unfortunately emit blue light, which human eyes aren’t particularly good at blocking without assistance, which comes in the form of yellow-tinted glasses or software programs such as Flux or Twilight. Gazing at screens all day, from our tablets to monitors to phones, results in a lot of exposure to blue light and consequently, eye strain. Companies like Gunnar manufacture glasses specifically for screens, but if you dislike the idea of buying a new set of glasses, a new business called Lensabl can convert your current frames into blue light-blocking lenses. See what’s new and trendy when it comes to prescription glasses and get them adapted for computer screens.
Fatigued Eyes
A good posture and correct eye level to our laptop or monitors certainly helps prevent strain, but so too does taking breaks away from the screen. The best way to do this is the famous 20/20/20 rule, which means to look at something 20 feet away for 20 seconds every 20 minutes. This keeps the eyes from only focusing on one thing throughout the day, as you’ll be using your full range of vision. Placing an ice pack or heat pack over your eyes at the end of the day can help sooth pain, as can over-the-counter painkillers or simply placing your hands over your eyes and closing them for a few minutes.
Adjust Your Settings
It might be as simple as reducing the brightness on your screen, but getting eye strain could also be because the font is too small. Zooming in on web pages and enlarging the font size on Word or Excel documents will make it easier on our eyes, as we have to squint less.
Overall, blink more, use specialized glasses if necessary, check your monitor height, look at your font size, and take lots of breaks!
