Tips for protecting eyes while working from home on computer

Bhubaneswar: With lockdown restrictions in force, most of us are spending hours on laptops/desktops while working from home, this naturally puts strain on our eyes.

Spending long hours in front of the computer screen can lead to eye strain or can redness of eyes due to excessive dryness. The blue light emitted from screens is harmful for the eyes, suggests a research. According to a study published in Current Medical Research & Opinion, moderate to severe dry eye not only impacts our general health negatively but also our daily work productivity.

To keep your eyes healthy, it is important to have a nutritious diet, which includes food especially for your eyes. These include leafy vegetables, eggs, fish, legumes, nuts and beans. This apart, one should be wearing UV eye protection that blocks at least 99% of both UVA and UVB light rays.

There are many preventative steps to minimize eye strain, especially during this time when working from home has been advised to employees from across sectors.

• The monitor should be positioned slightly down from eye level and at least 25 inches, or arms length, away to reduce the intensity of the light and stress on the eyes.
• Take a break every 15-20 mins or a maximum of one hour from the screen. This involves opening and closing your eyes consciously and looking away from the screen for about 15-20 secs. It encourages the muscles in your eyes to relax and can help reduce fatigue.
• Screens that glow brighter than the surroundings force the eyes to work harder. Try to match the screen brightness to the level of the room and increase the contrast to reduce eye strain.
• We naturally blink every 4 seconds, but some studies indicate this decreases by more than 50% when staring at computer screens or other digital devices.
• Make an effort to blink as often as possible, this will keep eyes moist and avoid dryness.
• Avoid glare from windows and lights as much as possible and use anti-glare screens when possible.
• If you are facing some irritation, itching, watering or redness in the eye, it is advised that you consult a doctor who can prescribe some anti-allergic drop. With doctors now providing consultation over the phone or video calling, seeking medical advise should not be difficult. In case of just redness of the eye, which is a symptom of eye strain, you can apply lubricating eye drop. But do not use any kind of eye drops without consulting the doctor.