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Prevent Eyestrain from Your Computer and Smartphone Screens


Staring at a screen all day likely won't cause permanent vision damage, but it can cause painful eyestrain. Keep your eyes healthy and prevent other issues like neck and shoulder pain by practicing good "eye-gonomics."

The Vision Council has published a helpful 16-page guide to avoiding digital eye strain. The first step is to identify symptoms of digital eye strain: red or dry eyes, blurred vision, general fatigue, or headaches. Back and neck pain can also be caused by poor workspace ergonomics.

Remembering to blink and using the 20-20-20 rule (take a 20-second break every 20 minutes and look at something 20 feet away) are among the many tips The Vision Council offers to combat eye strain.

One of the more interesting tips is to make sure your computer screen is far enough away from your eyes using the "high five test": If you can't give your display a proper high five, you're sitting too close. You should be sitting like so:

And holding your smartphone this way:

We've discussed how to keep your eyes healthy in front of the computer and the best way to hold your gadgets before, but the Vision Council's guide is a useful reminder of the basics.

Screens, Phones, Tablets and More: Keeping Your Eyes Safe in a Digital Age | The Vision Council via The Atlantic and Next Draft