Are you experiencing digital eye strain? Symptoms of digital eye strain include blurry vision, eye fatigue, eye redness. You can also experience headaches. Headaches related to digital eye strain typically occur around your eyes, on the forehead or temples. Always speak with a doctor if you are experiencing new or frequent headaches as this could be a sign of something more serious.
You spend all day in front of a computer. You work at different distances, on the computer screen then reading papers and back to your computer screen. Now there’s another meeting… If you don’t have the right lenses, you’re constantly removing your glasses or changing your head posture resulting in eye fatigue, neck and back pain.
What can be done about Digital Eye Strain?
- More regular breaks -follow the 20-20-20 rule
- blue light filter
- lenses with the correct prescription with the appropriate lenses for your prescription and visual needs
The 20-20-20 rule.
It’s recommended to look far, 20 feet away from you for 20 seconds every 20 minutes while looking at the screen
What about Blue Light Glasses for Digital Eye Strain?
The blue light filter helps relieve visual fatigue by reducing the amount of short-wave length rays (blue light) that enter the eye. Shorter wavelengths bounce more before entering the eye creating scatter which is visually disturbing.
Some people buy cheap ready-made blue light glasses online. These glasses are often really yellow-coloured and poor quality.
Get your eyes checked
A thorough eye exam is the first step to determining the cause of your symptoms.
The blue filter is important but, proper visual correction is key. Having the correct prescription in a pair of glasses with the blue light filter is much more appropriate. Having the correct pair of glasses can make all the difference. NEW ZEISS lenses could be the solution.
ZEISS SmartLife Digital Lenses
ZEISS SmartLife Digital lenses incorporate ZEISS SmartView Technology, based on applied research of today’s lifestyle, visual behavior, and age-related visual needs. It is ideal for patients in their 30s and 40s who have to switch between online and offline often. These lenses provide clear vision from far to near distance and improve eyestrain. Unlike poorer designs, these lenses offer a smoother transition into the lens periphery with less perceived blur. The design is great for young presbyopic patients for an easier transition later into progressive lens designs.
ZEISS Officelens
The ZEISS Officelens offers relaxed and clear vision from near to intermediate distance. The viewing area for the computer is larger than with traditional progressive lenses and is available in different lens designs that can be customized depending on the wearer’s needs. Patients who work with multiple screens often prefer this option to progressives since the area of the lens dedicated to computer work is higher up in the lens and the viewing area is wider. Unlike traditional progressives, you won’t need to tilt your head backwards so you’ll have less strain on your neck.
All lenses are available with ZEISS BlueGard, a coating that reduces the blue light from computer screens and tablets as well as LEDs.
So what’s the takeaway? First step is to BOOK your eye exam. From there, we can recommend the best lenses suited to your needs. If you work in front of multiple screens maybe you are better off with ZEISS OFFICE lenses instead of progressives or maybe you need 2 pairs: 1 pair of progressive glasses and 1 pair of OFFICE glasses for all-day computer work. Younger presbyopic who experience fatigue and headaches with computer work could benefit from SmartLife Digital lenses.
At ROCKLAND EYE CLINIC, we only work with premium lenses and we will always give you a personalized recommendation based on your prescription and visual needs.
Angela Issa, OD