Dont Turn a Blind Eye to Digital Eye Strain

Hazard a guess – how much time do Singaporeans spend in a day staring at digital devices? The answer might shock you because it’s a staggering 12 hours and 42 minutes on average!

Despite all the wonders of technology, this relationship that we have with our nifty gadgets is not always healthy or advantageous. That’s because our eyes are subjected to large amounts of stimuli when exposed to such high levels of screen time.

This can result in a condition known as Digital Eye Strain. Its symptoms include blurred vision, eye irritation or dryness and excessive tearing. In a work or school environment, these discomforts can affect productivity and even increase the chances of making errors.

Avoiding screen time completely would be impractical in this day and age. However, there are ways to take care of your peepers. Whether you’re getting work done in front of the computer or catching up on your favourite TV series, here are some tips to help you avoid putting excessive strain on your eyes:

Don’t forget to blink

Blinking is a reflex that restores the eyes’ natural tear coating and prevents drying. We blink 12 times every minute on average. But oddly, we only blink five times per minute when we’re staring intently at a screen. So make a conscious effort to blink more or use eye drops to quickly moisten the eyes.

Give your eyes a break

When it comes to resting your eyes, just follow the 20-20-20 rule. First, look away from your screen every 20 minutes. Then, focus your attention on an object that’s 20 metres away from you. Lastly, maintain this gaze for 20 seconds. This simple exercise relaxes the eye muscles and gives your eyes some much-needed relief.

Cut down the glare

Glare caused by sunlight or harsh indoor lighting can be a real distraction. Shift yourself, reposition your workstation or add an anti-glare filter to your screen to avoid dazzling your eyes. If you’re sitting near a window, it’s best that there are curtains and blinds for you to adjust the right amount of light to let in. It’s also helpful to keep your screen free from smudges and dust for better visibility.

Adjust your display

Always try and match your screen brightness to your surroundings. A screen that’s too bright or too dull creates a tendency to squint as the eyes are struggling to take in visual information.

Do this simple test to find out if your screen brightness is suitable: look at a white background and if it looks like a light source, your screen may be too bright. Conversely, if the white background appears to be greyish, you might want to turn up the brightness by a few notches.

Boost eye health with berries

Digital devices emit harmful blue rays which can cause significant damage to the eyes. Luckily, eating the right foods can help. Berries such as acai berries, blueberries and cranberries have high antioxidant properties which protect the eyes from free radical damage and shield eye structures from blue rays.

Consider taking BRAND’S® InnerShine® Berry Essence, a natural source of antioxidants and nutrients which are important for keeping the eyes healthy. Every bottle contains the goodness of seven premium berries fortified with Vitamins A, C, E as well as Zinc. In particular, Vitamin A is essential for the functioning of the eye.