Home » Blog » Two Effective Methods of Battling Digital Eye Strain

Posted by: Georgia Eye Associates in General

We live in a world where digital devices are becoming more and more integrated into our daily lives every year. We spend many hours of our day staring at digital devices at work or at home and we rarely think to give our eyes a break every once in a while. As one would expect, this isn’t very healthy for our eyes.

The reason this isn’t healthy is that digital devices produce a certain type of light called “blue light.” Blue light has the highest wavelength of visible light, this allows it to penetrate all the way to the back of the eye, through the eyes’ natural filters causing your eyes to get strained quicker.

Digital Eye strain is becoming increasingly common among people of all ages. Have your eyes ever gone blurry after prolonged computer use? If you answered “yes,” then you have experienced digital eye strain. There are many other symptoms of digital eye strain: recurring headaches, dry or tired eyes, etc… If you regularly experience these symptoms, then it is time to start taking precautions to mitigate this issue.

First off there is the “20-20-20 Rule,” perhaps you have heard of this one? It is fairly simple! Every 20 minutes of digital screen use, you look approximately 20 feet off into the distance, for 20 seconds. You might be thinking “what could something like that do to help?” It actually does quite a bit! What it helps your eyes do is engage your distance vision, which essentially resets your eyes for the next 20 minute hurdle.

Over increasingly long periods of digital screen usage the “20-20-20 Rule” won’t always solve all your eye strain problems, and this is where I recommend the use of special lenses that filter out blue light. You can buy glasses especially made for the filtering of blue light for a relatively low amount of money. Preventative eye strain glasses can cost as little as $15, naturally if you need a prescription you will be spending quite a bit more.

Both of these preventative measures is recommended if you spend a lot of time staring at digital screens. A combination of both the “20-20-20 Rule” and blue light filtering glasses is your best option to protect your eyes from digital eye strain.