Staring at a monitor day in and day out has become a way of life for many modern workers. And while computers definitely make our lives better in numerous ways, allowing for faster, more efficient operations and communications, and leading to increased productivity, it turns out that they also have a downside.

Take myself for example. I probably spend at least 10 hours in front of a computer monitor. I already wear glasses, so rightfully I should be worried about the negative effects computer monitors can cause when it comes to eyesight.

Sitting at a computer work station all day can also cause physical problems, most notably bodily aches and pains, not to mention eye strain. Luckily, a slew of ergonomic solutions exist to combat the sore back, neck, and shoulders that can result from hunching over a desk all day. With chairs and keyboards more designed to correct alignment issues, you’ll soon be sitting correctly and more comfortably.

But, when it comes to preventing eye strain, you may have a hard time seeing the answer clearly, so to speak. Here are just a few tips to help you protect your eyes when you spend most of the day torturing them.

Tip 1: Adjust Monitor Settings for Optimal Viewing

The first thing you can do is adjust your monitor in a variety of ways. If the screen is too bright or too dark, it could cause undue strain on your eyes, so adjust it to a level that is neither so glaringly bright that it makes you wince nor so dim that you feel you have to look pretty hard to see the print.

From there you should also consider the size you have the font set to. Text that is too small can cause you to squint, but this is something that’s well within your control. All you have to do is set the font to a larger size on your word program and enlarge the pages when you browse online. These small adjustments could significantly reduce the demands you place on your eyes throughout the day.

Tip 2: See an Eye Doctor

This may seem like common sense, but for many it is not. If you’re still having trouble you might want to consider a visit to your ophthalmologist. An eye doctor can let you know if glasses might help. Even if your vision is not bad enough to warrant wearing glasses all the time, the strain caused by staring at a monitor could necessitate specific computer glasses.

These ocular aids are often termed as reading glasses, since that is what you’ll mainly be using them for (i.e. seeing fine details), but special coatings can also cut the amount of glare that makes its way to your natural lenses, thus reducing the effects of eyeballing a screen all day. By ordering online frames, lenses, and even contact lenses you can get them for less, and all may help to keep your eyes healthy and performing up to spec.

Tip 3: Keep Your Eyes Healthy and in Shape, Naturally

Of course, there are a lot of little tricks that you can practice throughout the day, as well. For example, you can try to blink more. This is something that we do naturally, but studies have shown that people who stare at computer monitors blink less frequently – up to five times less, in fact. That means your already strained eyes are missing out on a lot of natural moisture.

Eye drops can help, but if you actually get yourself in the habit of remembering to blink it will be better for the health of your eyes. You should also take breaks at least a couple of times each hour and look away from the screen. Try focusing on a nearby object and then a distant object (repeating ten times) to ensure that your eyes are getting the exercise they need to avoid undue strain.

Putting these tips into practice as early as possible will ensure that your eyes stay healthy for as long as possible. Take it from someone who knows all about eye strain and staring at a computer all day (not to mention I’ve worn glasses since I was in the 5th grade), taking care of your eye sight is a very important aspect of life that you do not want to ignore.

Tagged with: • • • • • •

Filed under: Personal Development • Work From Home

Like this post? Subscribe to my RSS feed and get loads more!