WASHINGTON — As life gets more and more digital, more people are spending time staring at screens. You know by now that that leads to eye strain, but it seems people are not doing anything about it.
A survey released Wednesday by The Vision Council at the International Consumer Electronics Show concludes that 65 percent of Americans are suffering from some of the symptoms of digital eye strain, such as dry, irritated eyes, blurred vision, neck and back pain, and headaches.
And nearly 80 percent of those reporting such symptoms regularly use two screens at once.
“Our eyes are not built to stare at digital screens all day, but the demands of our modern-day world frequently put us in front of a screen for hours every day. Patients underestimate how their technology use may be contributing to eye strain and do not consider ways to reduce this stress,” Justin Bazan, a optometrist and medical adviser to The Vision Council, says in a statement,
The reports of digital eye strain symptoms are fairly consistent across generations: About three-quarters of those in their 20s report symptoms, while the number is 69 percent for those in their 30s, 66 percent for those in their 40s and 65 percent of those in their 50s.
More troublingly, perhaps, about 90 percent of those in their 20s use two devices simultaneously.
If technology causes eye strain, Mike Daley, CEO of The Vision Council, says that technology also can help solve it.
“Many people think suffering with digital eye strain is unavoidable, but it doesn’t have to be. The optical industry has responded to the shift in digital habits,” Daley said.
It’s called computer eyewear, and its lenses and filters can decrease brightness, block the high-energy visible light, or blue light, emitted by computer screens.
Along with the computer eyewear, The Vision Institute passes along four other recommendations to relieve and prevent digital eye strain:
- Follow the 20-20-20 rule: Take a 20-second break from the screen every 20 minutes and look at something 20 feet away.
- Reduce the overhead lighting at your workspace.
- Make sure the screen is the optimal viewing distance from your eyes. The institute’s tip for measuring the distance? High-five it. The screen should be the length of your arm away.
- Bump up the text size on your devices.
The full report, based on a survey of 10,000 American adults, is here.
