Digital Eye Strain | Waterdown | Flamborough Family Eyecare

Relieving Digital Eye Strain

Daily life can be demanding on your eyes, and they deserve a break! At Flamborough Family Eyecare, we recognize that digital eye strain can be stressful and uncomfortable to deal with and are here to help your eyes find some well-deserved relief.

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What Causes Digital Eye Strain?

Digital eye strain, also known as computer vision syndrome, can occur from spending long hours in front of a screen. The effects of this condition can be magnified by preexisting vision conditions such as uncorrected myopia, astigmatism, or presbyopia.

Depending on your eye condition, your eyes may have to exert extra effort to maintain a clear image when viewing your screen, resulting in extra stress and strain on your eyes.

Common symptoms of digital eye strain include:

Blurred vision
Eyestrain
Headaches

Even people with perfect vision can experience digital eye strain with prolonged computer use. To ensure your computer usage habits are healthy, our team will conduct a thorough eye exam to help determine a digital eye strain relief plan for you.

Treating Digital Eye Strain

During your comprehensive eye exam, our team will discuss your symptoms and what a normal day of screen usage looks like for you. A comprehensive exam can help your eye doctor determine if your discomfort is due to digital eye strain or a more serious vision or health problem.

When getting to the bottom of your eye strain issues, there are some factors to consider:

How many hours a day you use a computer
The distance from your eyes to your screen
The setup of your workstation
What the lighting is like in your work space

There are a few things you can do to assist in the prevention of digital eye strain. Some of these tips are quite easily accessible, and you can start practicing them today!

Practice the 20-20-20 Rule

Sitting in front of your screen for long periods of time can strain and even dry out your eyes, especially if you forget to blink. Focusing your full attention on a task is a common occurrence, but it’s essential to take a break.

Practicing the 20-20-20 rule is a great way to give your eyes some rest. The 20-20-20 rule involves:

Looking away from your screen every 20 minutes.
Focusing on something 20 feet away.
Looking at it for at least 20 seconds.

Use Eye Drops

The intense focus when viewing your screen can reduce the number of times you blink per minute. When you blink less, your eyes can get dry and irritated, and you can help relive this dryness and irritation with artificial tears.

Get in contact with us to determine the best eye drops for you!

Consider Specialized Lenses

At Flamborough Family Eyecare, we’re happy to work with you to find the best lens type to combat digital eye strain.

Some specialized lenses offer coatings and tints to make the blue light from computer screens more tolerable during long work hours. Even with the proper eyewear, frequent breaks will do your eyes a favour.