According to The American Academy of Ophthalmology, there has been a 42% increase of nearsightedness since 1971. Although screen time plays apart in this increase, the activity is not the only culprit. Scientists suggest that any activity that requires ‘near work’ activities, such as reading books, has a part to play. But because so much of our days revolve around the screen – from watching TV, working on the computer, to checking our phones – the amount of our ‘near work’ activities increase. Thus, increasing eye strain. With that being said, we do not place blame on our culture of relying on the digital screen. Instead, we aim to promote a habit that may save you from digital eye strain. Here are some ways you can mindfully spend time away from your digital screen.
Use Screen Time on Your iPhone
Screen time is an app that tracks how much time you spend on certain apps on your phone. This app was created by engineers who acknowledge that our phones can be addicting. By tracking our phone usage, we can have a clear picture of exactly how many hours we spend on our phones. To enable this feature, go to Settings > Screen Time. You can even place limits on how much time you spend on each app by going to Screen Time > App Limit.
Download Flora – Focus Habit Tracker
Flora is a fun way to keep yourself accountable. The app uses colorful animations to encourage you to reduce your screen time. When you are determined to not use your phone, open the app and hit start. A tree is planted and continues to grow as you focus on your task at hand. If you break and leave the app to do something else on your phone, the tree will be killed. You can collect trees to showcase your growth in reducing your phone usages.
Remember to Blink
Eye strain occurs more when we stare at our screens because we tend to blink a lot less when using digital devices. Blinking is important because each blink cleans the surface of the eye from debris. Fresh tears help to keep the eyes moisturized and nutrients are dispersed. When we blink less, our eyes may be suffering from common symptoms of prolonged digital use. These symptoms include dry eyes, blurry vision, headaches, and eye strain.
Take Breaks
Our digital screens are addicting because when we use them, we tend to be very focused on the task at hand. Because of this, blinking occurs less. For every 20 minutes of digital use, take a 20 second break. Look up and off into the distance to give your eye a much needed and quick break.
As our world continues to rely on technology, we will undoubtedly spend more and more time interacting with digital screens. Not only do our phones provide us with entertainment to fill in down-time throughout the day, the hand-held device also acts as our personal assistant, from purchasing products online to reminding us when our next meeting is. Implement the four tips today and see how much better your eyes will feel in the coming weeks.
good advice
I try to abide by the rule, for every 20 minutes of screen time, have your eyes focus on an object at least 20 feet away or more for 20 seconds.
That is a good rule! Thanks for sharing 🙂
I try to always have something else to do besides constantly staring into my phone but it’s hard when today’s generation is all tech out..but yes this is good reminder app..
Agreed! It is very hard in today’s world! 🙂
That was very educational thanks
The suggested tips were very helpful, thank you!
One thing I have on my kindle fire is this blue light that I can set so it will turn itself on automatically. Not to sure if it is a good thing though!? Further looking into it, it states that it reduces the strain to your eyes. However, once it activates I find it a bit harder to see what I am reading.