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How All That Screen Time Actually Affects Your Eyes
The 20–20–20 rule can help
The second I woke up this morning, I picked up my phone and checked my email before catching up on Instagram and Twitter. I spent the next eight or so hours switching between browser tabs for Gmail, Zoom, and Google Docs to work. Any time I took a break, I was back scrolling through social media or reading a few chapters of an e-book on my iPad. When I wrapped up work, I did an hour-long workout using the Nike Training Club app on my phone. Before bed, I watched two episodes of Schitt’s Creek.
Sounds pretty normal, right? Since lockdown started, 59% of adults admit to spending more time on their computers and mobile phones, and 55% say they watch more TV, a poll of over 1,000 Americans found in July.
Aren’t your eyes exhausted?Just two consecutive hours staring at a screen puts you more at risk for eye strain, dry eyes, headaches, and blurred vision, according to the American Optometric Association. Most of these problems are temporary, though, says William Reynolds, O.D., president of the American Optometric Association and CEO of Eye Care Center Optometrists PSC in Richmond, KY. “If you get away from the computer and relieve that strain, usually, the problems go away,” he explains.
