How to Decrease Eye Strain from Screens

Computers, cell phones, and tablets are a way of life for us all. But don’t you just know when you’ve spent too long staring at them…? Tired, itchy, watery, red eyes are common after excessive use—but for most of us, it’s virtually impossible to steer clear of them.

So how can you decrease the strain caused by screen use? Thankfully, there are many steps you can take to do so. Read on to find out what they are…

Eye strain, Screens, and How to Reduce the Effects

• Why does screen use cause eye strain?
• Steps to reduce eye strain from screens

Why does screen use case eye strain?

Screens cause us to use our eyes unnaturally. When staring at a screen, the rate at which you blink reduces dramatically. In turn, this lets the eyes become dry, as blinking is the natural method of spreading tears across the eyes to moisturize them.

Pretty much all of us are guilty of overusing screens. Typically, many of us work on our computers during the day, pausing for breaks when we swap this to scroll through our phones. Then, to chill in the evening, we switch on the TV and stare at that instead. This can amount to multiple hours each day where we’re staring at a screen.

It’s no wonder so many of us suffer from eye strain related to screen use… 

Steps to reduce eye strain from screens

Happily, there are many steps we can take to reduce the stress this causes to our poor eyes. While, at first, the following might take a little getting used to, after a while they’ll become second nature.

1. Reduce screen glare: Quite simply, turn down the brightness. This is becoming really easy to do, with technology offering automatic screen brightness according to the conditions. Therefore your computer, cell, or tablet will up the ante when you’re in full daylight and reduce it when the ambient lighting is lower.
2. Position your computer/TV correctly: Ideally, we should be at least 20” from the screen. In terms of your computer, it should be positioned at or slightly below eye level. This means that you cast your gaze slightly downwards when looking at it. When it comes to your TV, the penchant for wall mounting often means that they’re positioned too high. Again, the aim should be to look straight at the screen, not having to crook your neck to do so.
3. Use prescribed corrective lenses: If you’ve been given them, use them! If you’ve not had an eye check in a while, then now is the time to book one to ensure any refractive errors are diagnosed and lenses prescribed.
4. Put. Down. Your. Cell: Yep, that age-old nag to stop constantly staring at your cell phone is key to reducing digital screen eye strain.
5. Use the 20:20:20 rule: Look away from the screen every 20 minutes, for 20 seconds, and focus on something at least 20 feet away.

All of these tips will significantly reduce your risk of digital eye strain. Once you put them into practice, we guarantee you’ll wonder how you ever got away without them…

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