Does looking at a
computer/phone damage your
eyes?
By April Cashin-Garbutt, BA Hons (Cantab) The old saying goes that
watching too much TV will
make your eyes go square.
Nowadays, we seem to spend
most of our time looking at
screens: be it a computer screen at work, a mobile
phone screen to make a call
or a TV screen to relax. But
how bad is looking at screens
for our eyes? Is there really
any truth behind the old saying? According to Dr Blakeney, an
optometric adviser to the
College of Optometrists,
computers will not
permanently damage the
eyes; however, they can cause strain or exacerbate existing
eye conditions. (1) What problems do
looking at computer
screens cause? People who look at
computers frequently, (in
particular those that look at a
computer for more than
three hours a day), (2) may
experience symptoms such as: Eye discomfort Headaches Itchy eyes Dry or watering eyes Burning sensations Changes in color perception Blurred vision Difficulty focussing (1, 2, 3) Eyestrain Eyestrain is a type of
repetitive strain injury (RSI)
that is caused by insufficient
rest periods, incorrect
working conditions and so
forth. (2, 4) There are many causes of
eyestrain. One of these is
glare. There are two types of glare,
direct and indirect. Direct
glare is where light shines
directly in your eyes; whereas
indirect glare is caused by
light reflecting off surfaces into your eyes. (3) Glare often results from
computer screens being too
dark or too bright. (2, 5) Glare leads to eye muscle
fatigue, for the eyes have to
struggle to make out the
images on the screen. (2) Another major cause of
eyestrain is the position of
the computer screen. Naturally, the eyes are
positioned so that they look
straight ahead and slightly
down. If the eyes have to look in a
different direction, the
muscles have to continually
work to hold this position. Thus, if your computer
monitor is positioned
incorrectly, the eye muscles
must constantly work to hold
the eyes in the correct
position to view the monitor. (2) In order to prevent the eyes
becoming strained in this way,
the top of your computer
screen should be no higher
than eye level. (3) Dry eye syndrome According to the NHS, using
your computer correctly can
also help to prevent dry eye
syndrome. Dry eye syndrome is a
condition in which the eyes
become inflamed due to a
lack of tears. This lack of
tears is commonly due to a
blockage of the oil secreting glands in the eyes. Although this condition
causes discomfort, it does not
usually affect vision. (6) Ways to minimise
damage to your eyes
caused by computer
screens There are several ways you
can minimise the potential
damage to your eyes caused
by looking at computer
screens. Firstly, it is important to set
up your computer screen so
that it is in the correct
position in relation to your
eyes. As previously mentioned, the
top of the screen should be in
line with your eye level. In
addition, the screen should be
placed approximately 18-30
inches from you. The screen should also be
tilted slightly back – between
10 to 15 degrees depending
on the person’s particular
preference. This is so that you
do not receive glare from lights in the ceiling. (3, 7) Glare can also be avoided by
placing blinds over nearby
windows, or using a glare
screen. (2, 5) In addition to adjusting the
position of your screen, you
can also minimise eye
problems by simply blinking
more frequently. Many people don’t realise
that they actually blink less
when they look at a screen.
(2) Blinking is important,
however, as it washes your
eyes in their naturally
therapeutic fluids. (5) It is also important to take
breaks from looking at your
screen. One easy way to
remember this is to think of
20-20-20. This reminds you
that every 20 minutes you should try to look at
something 20 feet away for a
minimum of 20 seconds. (5) It is also recommended to
take breaks from your screen
altogether, in particular every
2 hours. (2) Can looking at screens
improve eyesight? Despite the potential eye
problems caused by looking
at a screen too frequently,
research carried out in the US
has actually found that some
screen viewing can be of benefit to the eyes. Specifically, they found that
playing video games can
improve vision. This is because playing video
games gives the users chance
to improve their contrast
sensitivity. ( Contrast sensitivity refers to
how faded an object can be
before it is impossible to
differentiate it from the same
field of view. It is something
that is affected by ageing. (8, 9) Contrast sensitivity is
particularly important for
activities such as driving in
poor visibility, like in fog or
at night. ( Overall does looking at
computers damage your
eyes? Overall it seems that although
looking at a computer may
not cause permanent eye
damage, it can cause some
irritating problems, such as
eye strain and dry eyes. It is also important to
remember, that there are
many other potential
problems associated with
sitting down and staring at a
computer for long periods of times, such as deep vein
thrombosis (DVT). (10)

Good research

Thank u. I thought sharing this with d NLDERS will be a good thing to do. Most mobile users are doing more harm than good to their eyes by looking at their phone screen all the night surfing the net and other stuffs.