1.

Explaining Digital Eye Strain

T his is a real affliction affecting real people. I know because I’ve

experienced some of the symptoms myself. Digital Eye Strain (sometimes

called Computer Vision Syndrome) is not one specific problem, but rather
emcompasses a variety of issues related to eye pain like fatigue, dry eyes, and
blurred vision.

WebMD describes it as such:

Digital Eye Strain (computer vision syndrome) is similar to carpal
tunnel syndrome and other repetitive motion injuries you might get at
work. It happens because your eyes follow the same path over and over.
And it can get worse the longer you continue the movement.
When you work at a computer, your eyes have to focus and refocus all the
time. They move back and forth as you read. You may have to look down at
papers and then back up to type. Your eyes react to changing images on the
screen to create so your brain can process what you’re seeing. All these jobs
require a lot of effort from your eye muscles. And to make things worse,
unlike a book or piece of paper, the screen adds contrast, flicker, and glare.
You’re more likely to have problems if you already have eye trouble, if you
need glasses but don’t have them, or if you wear the wrong prescription for
computer use.
Computer work gets harder as you age and the lenses in your eyes becomes
less flexible. Somewhere around age 40, your ability to focus on near and
far objects will start to go away. Your eye doctor will call this condition
presbyopia.

For something that affects 70% of Americans, you would think that there
would be more people talking about it, more blogs covering it, and the alarm
bell ringing. But when something becomes so pervasive that we all consider
it the “new normal”, maybe that’s when we really should start paying
attention to it.
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But we need to understand why this is happening. I’ve worn contacts for two
decades and often ask my eye doctor whether I should be worried about the
strain I put on my eyes from the computer work I’ve been doing for decades
as well. Regardless of doctor or source, you get the same answer about what’s
happening phsiologically when you stare at a computer screen or smart
phone all day.

It’s about viewing things up close.

When you focus your eyes on something within a foot or two away, what’s
happening is that your eye muscles and cornea are is being flexed as hard
as they can to focus light precisely to that distance. When you look far away,
your eye is relaxed. So imagine flexing your bicep for 10 hours per day, every
day, for decades. With that much stress placed on a muscle for that long, the
muscles will get tired and not work as well as they could

Only it’s not a big muscle. It’s a thin, fragile element of one of the most
important sensory input mechanisms your brain uses to navigate the world.
Be careful, my friends. This could get ugly.

This all begs the question, then, of what we can do to address our ever-
increasing digital eyestrain?

2. Solutions for Digital Eye Strain

A few of these include:

 Following the 20–20–20 rule, taking a 20-second break from the screen
every 20 minutes and looking at something 20 feet away (our favorite)
 Reducing overhead lighting to eliminate screen glare
 Positioning yourself at arm’s distance away from the screen for proper
viewing distance when at a computer
 Increasing text size on devices to better define content on the screen
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But both Khurana and Rosen say that the two main causes of eyestrain are not
blinking and having an improperly set up workspace. You want your screen
brightness to be on a similar level to the surrounding room — your eyes may
strain if that's not the case. Glare can cause eyestrain, but the best ways to
fix it are to use a matte screen and make sure your lighting is well set up.
And most important for eyestrain: We blink less when we focus intently on
something like a computer screen (or a book). Instead of blinking 15 times a
minute, we'll do so 12 or 10 times. Doing that is enough to make our eyes
feel dry and unfocused, says Khurana.
"Over the course of the day if [cornea cells] dry out beyond a certain point,
they can't recover," says Rosen. "Not until they're replaced overnight will you
feel comfortable."
Eye drops can help, says Khurana. Following the 20-20-20 rule — looking
away from your screen at something at least 20 feet away for 20 seconds every
20 minutes — can also help. And the American Academy of Ophthalmology has
some more tips. Eyestrain is uncomfortable and irritating, but fortunately it's
not associated with permanent damage.