The Impact of Digital Media on Our Eyes

It’s gotten hard to look away from constantly surfing through websites and reading interesting articles that takes our mind away from the droll of the routines of our day.  It’s easy to lose track of time when we use the internet, it doesn’t seem harmful, most of us would be okay with losing a few hours.  Yet, where it takes a toll, is somewhere we don’t really think about, but we use it every day, in fact it’s how we are able to interact with the internet. Our eyes.

Computer eye strain has become an issue for our eye health as we become more and more enveloped with staring at screens.  I noticed that in my own vision, I can no longer look at my screen for as long as I used to because my eyes would start to blur and I would get headaches.  When I went to see the eye doctor, she recommended that I look away from the computer for at least 20 minutes after every couple of hours.  Even while researching online, I found a video on the issue where Dr. Knueppel, an optometrist with the Vision Therapy Center, recommends that for every 15 minutes, too look at a different object for 20 seconds.

This is an interview with Dr. Knueppel on Computer Eye Strain:

After a quick Google search, I found many tips on how to ease computer eye strain.  Yet, it seems more like putting a bandage on a festering wound.  What I find interesting is that there is not much of a concern with how digital print affects our health.  Like junk food, we eat it because it is good, but too much of it, will damage our health.  Similarly, as more and more of our lives becomes a part of the digital world, our eyes suffer the consequences.

Here is more information about Computer Eye Strain:
The Vision Therapy Center Blog