Did you know that, on average, Americans spend around 7 hours a day staring at screens? Whether it’s on a desktop computer, smartphone, or tablet. Plus, with the increasing popularity of social media and the booming tech industry - that number isn’t likely to fall anytime soon. All this screen time is contributing to a huge problem - and that is digital eye strain, also known as the more technical term - Computer Vision Syndrome. In this post, we’ll give you 6 tips to help combat and relieve symptoms of digital eye strain.

What is digital eye strain?

Digital Eye Strain is basically eye and vision problems caused by extended computer or digital device use. Looking at a screen for too long, not blinking enough, or that screen being too bright or too dim can contribute to digital eye strain as well. Typically, digital eye strain occurs because the visual demands of performing a task, outweigh the visual abilities a person has to perform that task comfortably. 

What are the symptoms of digital eye strain?

• Sore, tired, burning or itching eyes
• Eye fatigue
• Headache
• Blurred or double vision
• Watery or dry eyes
• Neck, shoulder, or back pain
• Increased sensitivity to light
• Difficulty concentrating or keeping your eyes open

What are the causes of digital eye strain?

While digital device use is the primary cause of digital eye strain, there are a lot of factors that contribute to the problem as well as general eye strain, such as:

• Extended digital device use
• Not blinking enough
• Bright light or glare from the screen
• Straining to see due to poor contrast or dim lighting conditions
• Circulating air, such as from air conditioning or a fan
• Stress or fatigue
• Underlying eye conditions, such ass dry eyes or uncorrected vision
  

How do you know if you suffer from digital eye strain?

To find out if digital eye strain affects you, just take a look at the symptoms mentioned above. Eye fatigue, headaches, blurred vision, dry eyes, or neck and shoulder pain are all indicators of digital eye strain. It also doesn’t have to be just one or all of these. Any combination of these symptoms can be a result of digital eye strain.

How can you get relief from digital eye strain? 

There is one sure-fire way to completely rid yourself of digital eye strain - put down all your electronic devices! Just don’t use electronics... But, let’s face it, no one is going to do that. Most of us can’t do that because we all rely heavily on electronics and screens for work. And for the rest of us? We’re not giving up our funny cat videos anytime soon. So, we’ll give you 6 tips to help prevent or combat the effects of digital eye strain.

Tip #1: The 20-20-20 Rule

There a lot of methods to relieve eye strain. The simplest, and probably the easiest to remember, is the 20-20-20 rule. For every 20 minutes of screentime, you should spend 20 seconds looking at something at least 20 feet away. In addition to that, it’s also recommended to take a 20-minute break for every 2 hours of screen time that passes. 

I know you may be thinking, with all of your work online, there’s no way to make that realistically happen. But, you can try to use this time to do things like make a pot of coffee, get up and walk around the living room, or get a snack.

If you’re super busy, taking this many breaks can seem impossible, but just remember that it is super important in order to keep your eyes and yourself healthy. And your brain healthy too!

Tip #2: Blink More

Blink with intention! Staring at screens can lead to reduced blink rates. And reduced blink rates lead to over-exertion and dry eyes. Liquid tears or eye drops are a great prevention tool against this! Keeping some at your desk can even serve as a daily reminder of your blink frequency. It’s also the perfect backup solution if you aren’t able to look away and blink. Drops can keep your eyes from drying out.

Tip #3: Add Moisture to the Air

Low air quality can have an extreme drying effect on the eyes, which should make humidifiers your new best friend. Humidifiers are the perfect way to add more moisture to the air and have a large range of benefits such as hydrating skin, reducing dry eyes, and improving breathing conditions. They even sell miniature versions powered by USB that you can plug right into your computer.

Tip #4: Check Your Distance

This tip has to do with the positioning and distance of your computer screen. The ideal positioning is about 20-28 inches away. This is about an arm’s length away. When setting up your screen, it is also good practice to have your screen lower than your eye level by about 15 to 20 degrees or 4 to 5 inches. 

Once you’ve got your desk setup figured out, you then need to pay attention to your posture and seating position. Make sure your chair is comfortable and your feet are flat on the floor. All of this helps to reduce screen glare and prevent your eyes from overworking.

Tip #5: Set Screen Time Limits

Most phones nowadays track your screen time for you. So, it’s a good idea to start checking it out! If you find yourself shocked that you’re spending hours staring at your phone for something unnecessary, you can start to limit yourself. There are even options in most phones to lock apps after a certain time limit. 

Tip #6: Combat Blue Light 

One of the biggest causes of digital eye strain is the blue light emitted from monitors like computers, tablets, and mobile phones. Blue light can negatively affect your eyes long-term and boost your risk of eye disease. Overexposure to blue light can cause headaches, eye fatigue and even affect your sleep. 

The good news is, there are TONS of blue light filtering lenses out there to help reduce those symptoms and help you get a good night’s sleep. At Fuse Lenses, we sell both complete blue light glasses and replacement lenses with blue light filtering technology that we custom cut to fit any brand-name sunglasses! This means you can take your favorite pair of shades and turn them into blue-light-fighting machines.

Summary

Digital eye strain can cause eye fatigue, headaches, dry eyes, or neck and shoulder pain. If you think you might be suffering from digital eye strain, a.k.a Computer Vision Syndrome, there is a lot you can do to help get sweet relief! Taking frequent vision breaks, blinking more, using a humidifier, changing your desk setup, and setting screen time limits are just a few. You can also try out Fuse Lenses’ blue light lenses for help combating headaches, blurry vision, and even sleep issues caused by overexposure to blue light emitted from digital devices.