How Can I Avoid Eye Strain at Work?

Many Americans work with computers or other visually demanding tasks in their everyday work, and it’s important to know how to take care of your eyes. If you use a computer every day or do lots of repetitive work on a small scale such as component assembly, you are at risk of developing eye strain. Luckily, there are several easy ways to prevent eye strain and keep your eyes from feeling fatigued at work.

1. Don’t Forget to Blink

Blinking is generally an unconscious action your body performs without requiring you to think about it. However, when you spend a lot of time working in front of a computer screen, your focus on your work may cause your body to forget to blink occasionally. Not only can this dry out your eyes and cause discomfort, it can also lead to eye strain over time.

2. Take Frequent Breaks

A good way to relax your eyes is to look away from your screen and try to locate an object about 20 feet away. Focusing on another object at a distance can help relieve your strained eyes after looking at a close computer monitor all day. You may feel pressured to keep working, but breaks like these every few hours will help alleviate eye strain without costing you productivity.

3. Visit Your Optometrist for Regular Checkups

If you wear contacts or glasses, an outdated prescription can easily cause eye strain. If you find it hard to focus, or your contacts or glasses don’t seem as sharp as they used to be, share your concerns with your optometrist. Some people find relief after a prescription adjustment or switching from glasses to contacts or vice versa.

4. Reevaluate Your Workspace Lighting

The lighting in your work environment may also interfere with your vision. Glare from outdoor light can reflect off many surfaces and cause eye strain. If your computer monitor is too dark or too bright, it can cause similar problems. You may also want to find an antiglare computer screen cover. These covers fit over your monitor screen to eliminate glare and make it easier to read your screen.

5. Adjust Your Computer Monitor

The brightness and backlight settings on some computer monitors may also lead to eye strain. If you’re having trouble focusing on text on your screen, you should be able to adjust the size of the text with your computer’s zoom function or application settings. You can also manually adjust the monitor’s brightness level to find a setting that is more comfortable for your eyes.

6. Explore Dietary Changes to Improve Your Eye Health

Some foods and nutritional supplements may improve the health of your eyes. Ask your doctor about which foods or supplements that improve eye health would work with your diet. Vitamins A, C, E, and zinc are a few antioxidants that can help reduce eye strain.

7. Light Massage

Massaging the muscles around your eyes can help reduce swelling from eye strain and relieve irritation. Try taking breaks a few times each day to gently massage around your eyes and head when eye strain becomes uncomfortable.

These are just a few ways you can reduce or eliminate the eye strain you experience at work. If you have trouble adjusting your workspace, or your employer has very strict requirements for workspaces, ask a supervisor about acceptable ways you can adjust your workspace to reduce eye strain.

If you have dealt with pain and discomfort from eye strain over a long period of time, and you believe your eye strain resulted from work-related duties, you may be eligible for a workers’ compensation claim. Your workers’ compensation benefits may help you pay your medical expenses related to your eye strain and offer financial relief if you need to take time off work. If you’re unsure whether your situation warrants a workers’ compensation claim, reach out to a reliable workers’ compensation lawyer in Birmingham for a consultation.