You want to save your eyes on the computer? Then you've come to the right place! I think we can all agree that it's anything but natural behavior to spend hours and hours in front of a computer or smartphone with little movement.
One logical consequence is irritated, dry eyes and headaches - not to mention a rapid decline in visual acuity. On the other hand, the daily use of electronic devices is increasing - for example out of convenience or boredom. However, many of us also sit in front of a screen for many hours every day for work. Fortunately, there are ways and means of making the time spent in front of flickering devices easier on the eyes.
In this article, I'd like to show you how you can protect your eyes on your smartphone and PC - whether you're a daily screen worker or just a cell phone junkie!
In advance you will find here a short Overview about the contribution:
- Set up workplace ideally
- Set screen correctly
- Manage indoor climate
- Doing exercises with your eyes
- Using glasses for digital work
- Activate night mode in the dark
- Take a breather
- 20-20-20 rule comply
- Use eye drops
- Cover eyes
1. set up workplace ideally
First of all, it is important for eye-friendly work at the computer how you design your workstation. The following tips provide a healthy basis:
- Distance: You should leave at least 50 centimeters, but no more than 70 centimeters of space between your eyes and the screen.
- Windows: It is advisable to work in front of or next to a window. Regularly looking outside into the distance soothes your eyes.
- Daylight: You should also give preference to daylight, which is easier on the eyes, rather than the artificial light from the ceiling lamp.
- Reflections: Your PC screen should be positioned in such a way that it does not allow any distracting and, in the long run, tiring reflections.
- Seating position: You can also do your eyes, neck and shoulders a favor by looking slightly upwards at the screen during your daily work (viewing angle between 25 - 30 degrees).
Tip: Also, have a carafe of water ready. Because drink plenty of water every day, also helps your eyes!
2. set screen correctly
Everything implemented? Are you sitting comfortably? Then it's time to adjust your screen settings! Because these are crucial for protecting your eyes on the computer and screens in general. Here are some valuable tips:
- Contrasts and color temperature: Be sure to adjust the contrast and color temperature of your monitor. While bluish colors are rather tiring for the eyes, yellow-green colors are much more relaxing. When it gets a little darker outside, your screen should also get a little darker to protect your eyes.
- Resolution: Your eyes love a high resolution screen. A poor resolution, on the other hand, is very tiring in the long term and should be avoided. Just like screen flickering, which you can eliminate with a good graphics card.
- Gray Filter: Switch your screen to grayscale. This may be a little unusual at first - but it's a blessing for your eyes!
3. manage indoor climate
Experts consider an office humidity level of around 50 - 70 percent to be very eye-friendly. You can achieve this, for example, with a Bowl water to prevent the dry air from affecting your eyes.
You should definitely refrain from cigarette smoke! It is also advisable to clean your workplace regularly, as dust can also have a negative impact on your eye health.
4. do exercises with your eyes
If you want to save your eyes on the computer, they need variety. Frequent, deliberate blinking is a good start to prevent them from becoming dry. Also, simply look in a different direction, focus on neutral objects, open your eyes and close them. Repeat these activities for a few minutes at a time so that your eyesight is not impaired in the long term.
Also the Eye roll is a sensible and healthy exercise when you're not in a discussion with someone. 😉
Good to know: Yawning is pure relaxation for the entire musculature in our face. It also stimulates tear production and counteracts dry, tired eyes.
5. use glasses for digital screen workers
The blue-violet light from computers and smartphones is extremely stressful for the retina and the health of your eyes over time. One Glasses with blue filter coating keeps this light away from the retina.
There are now even so-called "digital spectacle lenses"which are ideal for daily computer work. They support the eyes in the near vision range and are recommended for all those who already suffer from slight, even age-related, visual fatigue. For example, yours truly 😉
6. ACTIVATE NIGHT MODE IN THE DARK
When it gets darker, the bright screen is much harder on the eyes than in normal daylight. Fortunately, it is very easy to activate night mode in the system settings of today's PCs. (For Windows under Settings/System/Display/Settings for night mode; on the Mac under System Settings/Monitor/Night Shift)
You can even set the display colors to change automatically to a warmer color spectrum so that white colors, for example, do not glow so intensely. If you implement this tip, you can usually even sleep better!
7. take a breather
Staring at your screen for hours on end is bad for your eye health! To Avoid overloading you should give yourself and your eyes a little break every now and then.
What should this look like in concrete terms? Just look consciously through the window into the distance for a few minutes and blink now and again. At the computer, our blinking is significantly reduced, which accelerates the drying out of our eyes. That's why we need to take appropriate breaks to help!
8. ADHERE TO THE 20-20-20 RULE
Californian optometrist Jeffrey Anshel has created a pretty sensible rule that you should definitely follow to save your eyes when using a computer. Every 20 minutes, focus for 20 seconds on a point that is at least 20 feet (just under 6 meters) away. It is recommended to simply look out of the window and observe the hustle and bustle of people/nature. In this way, you offer your visual organ variety and time to rest.
9. use eye drops
Do you suffer from dry eyes and the many eye-friendly tips (higher humidity, exercises, etc.) haven't changed anything so far? Then you should in consultation with your ophthalmologist It is best to use eye drops. They serve as additional tear fluid and thus support your eye health.
10. cover eyes
I kept one extremely effective exercise against dry, tired eyes a secret until the end: concealer! By this I mean that you several times a day for a few minutes a cloth slightly moistened with warm water on which you place your eyes. The darkness and warmth will help your eyes - and not least yourself - to relax.
Easy on the eyes on the computer and smartphone screen!
Every day we Germans have on average about 8 hours on any screen stared at. Due to the coronavirus pandemic, this figure has even risen to over 10 hours!
Those who value the health of their eyes, thus reduces his screen time quite specifically - and ensures that your eyes are protected as much as possible when you look at your computer or smartphone. I hope that I have been able to give you some useful tips in this article!
Do you have any questions, suggestions or your own experiences with blurred vision or tired and dry eyes at the computer that you would like to share? Then I look forward to your comment!
Stay healthy,
PS.: Have a look at the natural health blog around! There you can find out, for example, How healthy a balanced plant-based diet can be actually is. Have fun!
References:
₁ Madeleine Domogalla: Study - Pandemic increases screen time to more than 10 hours per day (as at: 11.03.2021), available at https://t1p.de/u05q. [25.08.2021].
