6 Ways To Protect Your Eyes In The Office

In today’s world, digital eye strain in the workplace is becoming increasingly common. However, being educated about eye strain is the first step in preventing it!

Over 70 percent of Americans who work on a computer on a daily basis suffer from digital eye strain. The good news is it’s avoidable if the proper precautions are taken.

To promote workplace eye health and safety, we’ve outlined some steps you can take to prevent and relieve digital eye strain.

Adjust Your Workspace

The optimal distance between your eyes and your computer screen is 20 to 24 inches, or about an arm’s length away. The center of your screen should be about 10 to 15 degrees below your eye level. Looking downward is often reported to be the most comfortable for the eyes as well as for the back and neck.

Use Proper Lighting

A major culprit in causing eye strain is glare. Glare on a computer screen is caused by harsh overhead lighting or light coming from windows, usually directly behind or in front of you. Position your computer screen to avoid glare and use drapes or blinds on windows if necessary.

Blink More

It seems simple enough, but we often forget to blink, especially when staring at a computer screen! Consciously make an effort to blink often while working. This will provide your eyes with much needed nutrients and moisture. If dryness persists, talk to us about lubricating eye drops!

[iframe https://www.youtube.com/embed/BxBeCYny66w?rel=0 620 349]

Modify Your Computer’s Display Settings

For the greatest comfort at your computer, consider adjusting your display settings. Here are some tips on how to have an eye-friendly computer display:

• Brightness: Adjust the brightness of your computer screen so it’s approximately the same as the brightness of your surrounding work station.
• Text size: Your eyes strain to read small text. Enlarge text size to give your eyes a break!
• Color temperature: Computers emit blue light which is associated with more eye strain than other hues, such as orange or red. Reducing the color temperature of your display lowers the amount of blue light emitted. This will reduce eye strain in the long run.

Take Breaks

Give your eyes a break from the screen by following the 20/20/20 rule. This will help to avoid and relieve digital eye strain. Every 20 minutes, look away from your computer toward something 20 feet away and focus on it for at least 20 seconds.

Come And See Us

If you are experiencing digital eye strain, come in and see us for a comprehensive eye exam. There are certain things we can do to help improve comfort and reduce strain!

Enjoy Your Work By Preventing Eyestrain

Promoting eye health and safety in the workplace is good for you and your employer! You will be more comfortable and productive if you take steps to avoid digital eye strain. So, work on and protect your eyes!

We love our patients!

Top image by Flickr user David Wall used under Creative Commons Attribution-Sharealike 4.0 license. Image cropped and modified from original.

The content on this blog is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of qualified health providers with questions you may have regarding medical conditions.