Effects of Smartphones to The Health of Your Eyes
Checking your smartphone at night is an innocent practice, and nothing seems wrong with the habit. The reality is that your eyes could be on the receiving end of the damaging light. The effect is the same when using your iPads, e-readers or laptops as they all transmit the same blue light. Some of the conditions caused by staring at your smartphone include eye fatigue and discomfort, blurred vision, eye twitching, red eyes, headaches and dry eyes. This post will dig deeper into the topic and give you solutions to this problem.
How Smartphones Damage Your Eyes
Staring at the screens generally causes eye strain, or what is referred to as computer vision syndrome. When the light from your phone is so bright, it mimics sunlight, and this may mess with your hormones and prevent you from sleeping. According to a study published in the journal Scientific Reports, the light from your phone might cause blindness. More studies carried out in the past show that the blue light is harmful. Additionally, they insist that the light changes molecules into “toxic”. This molecular change is regarded as the biggest contributor of blindness in world. It is important to understand that blue light has a shorter wavelength. As a result, it carries more energy than yellow, green or red light. The extra energy is what makes this light more harmful than any other. The energy erodes the health of your eyes over time.
The damage normally happens in the retina. The blue light is especially dangerous since, unlike other types of light, this light cannot be blocked or reflected by the eye’s cornea and lens. As a result, the light gets a straight shot to the photoreceptors of your eyes—the light-sensitive cells found in the retina. Alpha-Tocopherol-a molecule in the eye, works as a natural antioxidant and also protects the affected cells from dying. However, as a person ages or the immune system deteriorates, the eye loses the fighting power to combat against the toxic attacks exposed to the retina—that is when the eyes take the hit.
Generally, people blink far less when staring at any screen than they do when staring at other people. According to a 2017 study this habit was the primary cause of dry-eye disease—a condition where the eyes don’t produce enough moisture. Usually, tears moisturize the eyes and provide a protective film. Lack of moisture in the eyes irritate. As a result, keeping off smartphones will reduce dry-eye diseases symptoms.
The Solution
If you experience symptoms of digital eye strain caused by your smartphone or any other digital device, then you should consider the following tips:
Get A Comprehensive Eye Exam: Taking a routine comprehensive eye exam is the easiest way to prevent or treat problems caused by the blue light from your smartphone. If you constantly use your smartphone or any other device that emits light, then you should see your optician at least two times per year.
Use Proper Lighting: You will mostly strain your eyes when there is excessive bright light from the outdoor sunlight or the interior lighting. When using a smartphone, the ambient lighting should be half as bright as your surroundings. If there is too much exterior lighting, close the drapes, blinds or shades. You can also reduce your interior lighting by using fewer fluorescent tubes or light bulbs.
Adjust Your Display Settings: You can also reduce fatigue and eye strain when you adjust the display setting of your phone. You should adjust the brightness so that it matches that of your surroundings. The text size and contrast should also be comfortable to look at. Black print on a white background is generally the best combination when reading or composing text. You can also reduce the colour temperature of your device from blue light to orange or red. This reduces the amount of blue light emitted by colour display.
Blink More Often: Blinking moistens your eyes and prevents irritation and dryness. If the dry eye symptoms kick in, you should see your doctor and consider using artificial tears during the day. However, you can also try out a natural dry eye exercise. In this case, blink 10 times every 20 minutes. Do this slowly as if falling asleep.
Take Frequent Breaks: You can reduce the risk for vision syndrome by taking frequent screen breaks. This is especially important for people who earn their living from working on their smartphones. This means you should take a 10-minute break every hour.
Consider Using Glasses: If you are a frequent user of your smartphone, you should consider visiting your eye doctor and have eye glasses customized for you. These glasses are essential, especially if you always wear contact lenses, which can be dry and become uncomfortable. Glasses are equally important if you wear bifocals or progressive lenses since these lenses are not optimal for the distance to your screen. You may also consider choosing photochromic lenses or those lightly tinted to reduce your exposure to the harmful blue light.
With that said, you now understand the effects of exposing your eyes to the light emitted by your smartphone for long hours. If you experience symptoms of digital eye strain, you should keep off your smartphone and book an appointment with your doctor.
