How to get relief from work-related eye strain

Digital screens are pervasive not only at work but at home and in school as well.

In Europe, around 30 per cent of workers aged 15 to 74 reported using digital devices for all or most of their working time.

All that screen time can take a toll, with too much exposure leading to dry or watery eyes, fuzzy vision, and headaches.

It can also lead to myopia, or nearsightedness, in some people, especially children. So, how can you reduce eye strain?

Follow the 20-20-20 rule

Experts suggest taking a break from looking at your screen every 20 minutes.

You should focus your eyes on something about 20 feet (six metres) away for 20 seconds.

Pausing near work and looking at something in the distance gives tired, tight muscles time to relax.

“Luckily, eye strain is temporary,” said Raj Maturi, an ophthalmologist at Midwest Eye Institute in Indianapolis who serves as spokesperson for the American Academy of Ophthalmology.

“The best way to avoid these symptoms is by taking breaks from our screens or near work activities and using lubricating eye drops, if needed”.

It’s good to move around and go outside, but when you don’t have time for an outdoor walk, frequent 20-second breaks can help.

Change your desk setup

Some people find that using a larger computer monitor can help to reduce eye fatigue. You can also increase the font size on your laptop, monitor, or smartphone screen.

Sitting an arm’s length away from your screen and adjusting it so you’re looking slightly downward also can help reduce eye strain, according to the American Academy of Opthalmology.

Be wary of product claims

Some products, such as blue light glasses, are marketed with claims that they will reduce digital eye strain, improve sleep, and prevent eye disease.

But several studies have found the glasses are not very effective, according to the American Academy of Opthalmology.

It’s really our behaviour with digital devices that causes symptoms, not the small amount of blue light coming from screens, the group said.

Reading or smartphone scrolling after work

After stepping away from computers at work, many people find themselves reading or scrolling on smartphone screens.

Too much screen time or focusing on nearby objects can accelerate the onset and progression of nearsightedness, especially in children, said Ayesha Malik, a paediatric optometrist at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia.

Anyone streaming shows should do so on a television, instead of a tablet, to help relieve eye strain, she said.

Children should follow the 20-20-20-2 rule, which includes an extra “2” at the end to encourage playing outdoors for two hours a day, which helps with eye development, she said.

“The reality is that most children are engaging with screens throughout the day at school and home. It becomes difficult to track the total number of hours,” Malik said. “Aim for not more than 20 minutes during any one session”.

A report from the US National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine recommended last year, for instance, that children spend one to two hours outside because it “stimulates the eye with light that is brighter and more varied and requires different eye movements and focus compared to when indoors”.

Sleeping soundly

The blue light that digital screens emit can increase alertness, so watching Netflix on an iPad or scrolling through social media feeds in bed may make it hard to get restful sleep.

To give your eyes and brain the rest they need, doctors recommend turning off screens one to two hours before going to sleep.