As the world has become computerized, more of us spend more time each day looking at our computer monitors and reading the digital text. This puts a new kind of strain on the eyes. Both adults and children have been playing computer games and socializing on sites like Facebook and LinkedIn, and many of us do a lot of emailing and use a computer at work. This can lead to the condition called Computer Vision Syndrome.
Symptoms of Computer Vision Syndrome
Dryness in the eyes
Eye fatigue and burning
Blurriness
Double vision
Chronic strain in the neck and shoulders
Headaches
Printed Text vs. Pixels A pixel is the unit making up digital images, including text. Pixels are tiny and cannot typically be seen separately except in a program like Photoshop where you can zoom in very closely. The exact size of the pixels on your monitor depends on the degree of resolution your monitor is set at.
A low resolution such as 800 pixels across and 600 vertically gives larger pixels and larger text, along with more scrolling to see all the text.
A high resolution such as 1024 pixels across and 768 vertically gives smaller pixels and smaller text, with less scrolling because more text fits on the screen.
Most people use a high resolution because photos look much better with smaller pixels. Text also looks clearer and more defined. But the letters are still made of little square pixels arranged in various curves and our eyes must be more acrobatic to read them than they are for printed letters.
While the edges of each printed letter in a book or magazine are smooth, pixels create jagged edges. They cause our eyes to make thousands of microscopic movements in reading. It is not surprising that our eyes get tired after hours of reading on a monitor.
Tips For Reducing Computer Eyestrain Giving the eyes frequent rests is key. Look away from your monitor about every 20 minutes and focus on something relatively distant. By changing your focus to things at varying distances, you work the tiny eye muscles that control lens curvature. This is like getting up to walk around a bit after sitting down for hours.
You could also help your eyes by:
Reducing ambient light by closing blinds or drapes and turning off overhead lights
Blinking often to distribute tears over the eye surface, reducing dryness
Investing in a flat monitor instead of the old tube-style monitors
Setting the monitor contrast at a high level to pick out letter contours more clearly
Using computer glasses if your ophthalmologist agrees it would be beneficial
At Horizon Eye Care we provide excellent routine eye care – regular eye exams to catch problems early or prevent them. We also have a large optical shop staffed by highly-trained optometrists and opticians. If you would like to have computer glasses, we can help.
Please contact us if you would like to learn more by coming for a personal consultation with one of our eye doctors.
