Eye health is a big deal as most of us are spending multiple hours a day looking at screens. We look at a couple of different ways of keeping your eyes working well.
Take screen breaks
Most of us are using screens for many hours a day, and this shows no signs of slowing down. We work on computers, watch TV, play video games and fiddle around on our cell phones. While this might not feel like it’s doing damage, it almost certainly is. Prolonged staring at a screen can have several adverse effects on both your body and brain.
As a result, it’s a good idea to take screen breaks frequently. Giving your eyes a break, even if only for 10 minutes or so, can have very positive results. A good rule that many people utilise is the 20,20,20 rule. Take a break every 20 minutes, focus on something 20 feet away for 20 seconds. This is very easy to do, and you will notice your eyes are less strained, sluggish and sore by the end of the day.
Get your eyes checked frequently
Just like you go to the dentist to keep your teeth in good shape, you should go to an optometrist to keep your eyes working well. You may think your vision is fine, but going for an eye exam is really the only way to know for sure. Unfortunately, many of us are pretty bad at going for regular eye exams.
While the potentially high costs of exams and related expenses may scare some people, there are great vision insurance plans out there which can save you a lot of money. Others might think it’s simply a waste of time, but you may be surprised to find out that you actually see better with glasses or contacts. The only way to truly find out if your eyes are healthy is to go to regular eye exams.
Keep your hands clean
It is very common for us to touch or rub our eyes and not even think about it. Unfortunately, this can be very bad for your eyes in certain situations. Most of us don’t keep our hands as clean as we should, and rubbing our eyes introduces a lot of potentially-harmful bacteria into the eyes.
This is especially important for those wearing contact lenses. Not only can the bacteria get on the contact lenses and thus touch your eye directly, it could ruin the contact. Many germs from your hands can lead to eye infections like pink eye, which are not very fun to deal with.
Eat a balanced diet
What you eat can have a very large impact on the health and shape of your eyes. Of course, we all have heard that carrots are good for eyesight, but they are far from the only thing. Foods rich in antioxidants or omega-3 fatty acids are great for eye health. This includes leafy vegetables and fish, which are both full of the likes of vitamin A and vitamin C.
Harm to the retina can occur if you aren’t getting enough antioxidants. Too much fat can also constrict the blood flow into your eyes, which is obviously not a good thing. Switching to a more eye-healthy diet isn’t always easy, but it can certainly be done.
In conclusion, keeping your eyes in good shape is more important than ever with all the technology we use. That’s why everyone should take frequent screen breaks, get their eyes checked often and keep their hands clean. Doing these will help keep your eyes working well, despite the constant strain they are under with our phones, computers and tablets always being used.
