Digital Eye Strain | Danville Optometric Group

Taking a Break from Your Screen

Today’s digital world doesn’t leave much time for giving your eyes a much-needed break. Screen time has become an essential aspect of daily living, whether for entertainment or work.

We can all find ourselves spending long hours in front of our digital devices, and that’s when digital eye strain can affect our eyes. At Danville Optometric Group, we can explore different digital eye strain management techniques with you to help give you some relief.

Contact us to schedule an appointment and address your digital eye strain symptoms today.

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What Is Digital Eye Strain?

Digital eye strain, also known as computer vision syndrome, can affect your eyes from spending long hours in front of a computer, phone, tablet, or other digital screens. The effects of digital eye strain can be magnified by preexisting vision conditions such as myopia, astigmatism, hyperopia, and presbyopia.

Common signs and symptoms of digital eye strain may include:

Headaches
Eyestrain
Neck and shoulder pain
Dry eyes

Intense focus on your digital device can be hard on your eyes, and glare or reflection can add even more stress. These symptoms can develop because of poor lighting and improper viewing angles. It is essential to consider your workstation setup when dealing with digital eye strain.

Managing Digital Eye Strain

The first step to addressing your digital eye strain symptoms is booking a comprehensive eye examination with our team.

An eye exam is an important tool that allows our team to discuss your symptoms and review your screen usage habits. It also allows us to determine if the source of your discomfort isn’t something more severe.

At Danville Optometric Group, we also explore management methods that you can add to your daily routine to help control digital eye strain.

Blue Light Filtering Lenses

Blue light filtering lenses are designed to filter out blue light entering the eye, often from digital screens.

New technology uses a blue light filter, which is a special monomer placed inside the lens during manufacturing. Once placed inside the lens, anti-reflective coating is then added on the front and back of the lens for a maximal reduction in eye strain, glare, fingerprints, and blue light.

Blue light blockers can help restore normal circadium rhythm by allowing the body to produce natural melatonin to aid in better sleep, which is critical for youth and adults who use digital devices regularly.

Anti-Reflective Coating

Anti-reflective coatings are designed to prevent harsh glare from enterring the eyes.

More layers of anti-reflective coating that are applied to a lens means better glare protection and clearer vision. Our anti-reflective coated lensese contain a minimum of 16 layers and have extra oil repelling layers to reduces fingerprints and dust, along with a hard top layer to prevent scratches.

Match this with our blue filter monomer for the best protection.

Desk Ergonomics

Poor posture and an improperly configured desk could be big contributors to your digital eye strain.

Follow these helpful tips to ease your discomfort:

Position your screen an arm’s length away from your face
Position your screen slightly below your eye level
Ensure your arms don’t rest on your keyboard
Use wrist pads to help relax your neck & shoulders

Specially designed computer glasses can maximize your efficiency and reduce eye fatigue, as well as shoulder and neck discomfort, while standing or sitting.

The 20-20-20 Rule

The 20-20-20 rule can help give your eyes a break between long work sessions. Intense focus can lead to your eyes becoming dried out or strained.

The 20-20-20 rule involves:

Looking away from your screen every 20 minutes
Focusing on something 20 feet away
Looking at the object of focus for at least 20 seconds

Keep Your Eyes Hydrated

Digital eye strain and dry eye disease can go hand-in-hand. Not blinking enough during long work sessions can lead to your eyes becoming dried out and strained.

Artificial tear eye drops can be an excellent quick option to keep your eyes lubricated and provide much-needed relief.

Maintain Comfortable Lighting

The lighting of your setup can help prevent digital eye strain. Lighting that is too dim or too bright can have a negative effect on your eyes.

Finding a balance is important, and adjusting screen brightness, so you don’t have to squint or strain your eyes can be beneficial. Glare is also a contributing factor to eye strain and is important to consider in your setup.