Are you reading this on a computer at the moment? How long have you been sitting there in front of your computer monitor today? Now how long do you stare at that display each week? How about each month? What about the course of the year?
Do you own a smartphone? How many times to do you look down at that device throughout the day?
What about other screens like your television or a portable tablet?
What we’re getting at here is that you are probably exposed to countless hours of screen use and you don’t even realize the potential damage you could be doing to your eyes; the retinas in particular. Think about your average screen time throughout the course of just one week. Do you find yourself staring at a computer or laptop during the course of the work day? Are you one of those people that brings work home with them, meaning that you are probably facing a computer screen after hours, in the evening specifically?
Based on the answers you’ve given to the questions, you are being exposed to a significant amount of high-energy blue light (HEV). This is a form of light ray found in our computer screens, our laptops and tablets, our smartphones, and just about all of the other technologically advanced electronic appliances in our lives. Whether that’s your flat screen television or your smart refrigerator with touch-screen capabilities, your eyes are forced to focus on blue light rays that can be damaging.
As a result of this prolonged exposure to all of these screens you may find that you are experiencing certain symptoms that have been a mystery up until now. These might include effects like tired eyes, dry eyes, migraines, common headaches, blurred sight, or blank spots in your vision. You’ll feel fine one second, the next you find you need to sit back or even lie down for a minute or two. These feelings can come up on you unexpectedly but you’re probably not considering the amount of time you’ve previously spent staring at your computer.
There is a solution to the problems that come from working in front of your computer for hours on end: computer glasses.
If any of these symptoms are familiar to you, it’s due to your eyes working hard to manage the effects of that light. There’s a term for it: digital eye strain. It describes what is happening to your eyes rather aptly, they’re straining hard to adjust to the onslaught of blue light they are receiving. Expose your eyes to these light rays for long enough and you can start to experience more serious conditions that could drastically damage your eyesight for the long-term.
These include retina damage as a result of your eyes straining so hard to work through this exposure to blue light rays. It’s also the reason why you’re unexpectedly experiencing those symptoms of eye fatigue and headaches mentioned above. But that’s not all, when you use your computer can also have an impact on how blue light exposure results in digital eye strain and how it can your eyesight. Besides possible damage to the retina, this form of eye strain can also impair your vision by way of cataracts and the development of the condition called age-related macular degeneration.
Digital eye strain can also have a greater effect on your overall health and well-being. Many of us use computer screens in the evening often late at night, right before we go to bed. This can be very bad for you as blue light exposure prior to bedtime can screw up your circadian rhythms. That’s right, you may find you’re having trouble falling asleep and don’t even realize it’s due to your use of the computer.
The circadian rhythms are important for the proper secretion of serotonin, essential to help you sleep and rest through the night. But blue light exposure can interrupt the release of that serotonin and affect the quality of your sleep.
Why Computer Glasses are the Answer
Blue light exposure is actually a part of the very sunlight under which we all live every day. Sunlight, also called “white light” contains a full spectrum of colored light rays that we look upon daily. You get more than just blue light, you get red, orange, yellow, green, a full array of colored light rays, all of which are a part of electromagnetic radiation emitted by the sun.
Every color in the spectrum comes with its own wavelengths and levels of energy within them. The red portion of that spectrum has some of the longest wavelengths which means that it contains some of the least amount of energy. The blue portion of the light spectrum has much shorter wavelengths and much more energy within.
Now how do you think your eyes are going to react when that type of light is aimed, point blank at your eyeballs for hours on end every day? That’s why computer glasses are the answer. This form of eyewear is designed to filter out up to 50% of the blue light that your eyes are struggling against, reducing the symptoms that come with digital eye strain. These filtered lenses also filter out 95% of the strongest wavelengths but without the noticeable yellow tint that is detected.
Wearing computer glasses are the best protection against the effects of blue light exposure and digital eye strain that we put ourselves at risk of enduring each and every day. These lenses can be worn in magnified versions to correct the vision of the wearer or as a regular lens intended to safeguard the eyes from the effects of high-energy blue light.
Just think about all of the screens your eyes stare at each day. Think about how long they do it. Now think about how computer glasses can be effective protection against the dangers of the digital eye strain that threatens to damage your eyesight for the long-term. The answer is clear: computer glasses are a smart investment.
