Top Tips to Keep Your Eyes Healthy in the Office

It’s no secret that computer screens cause sight problems aplenty, as office workers are certainly no strangers to eye strain, dryness, irritation, blurred vision and headaches. 

 

Eye problems can have a huge impact on everyday life, with the blue light from our screens even going as far as messing with our sleep cycles and biological clock. All this doom and gloom is certainly preventable though, so here are a few tips to help you and your employees look after your eyes. 

If you’re spending a large part of your day gazing into the not-so-loving light of your monitor, it’s absolutely worth spending a few minutes getting it set up properly. Make sure the monitor is arm's length away and that your eyeline is close to the top of the screen. Tilting the screen upwards slightly can help reduce some glare, too. 

 

Lower brightness settings are always advised, and if your monitor is a more recent model, it might have a blue light filter. Blue light is the most harmful for our eyes, so reducing its intensity is never a bad idea. Larger font sizes and different resolution settings can also save your eyes some effort if you struggle when reading smaller text. 

Staring into your monitor all day can be even more harmful if your surroundings are poorly lit, as your eyes will suffer from an even harsher glare from the screen. Try opening blinds to maximise the amount of natural light in the room, or ask the maintenance team if they can replace nasty fluorescent lighting with something a little less intense and a tad more natural. 

 

Also, try to avoid sources of light being directly above or behind your PC. Anything you can do with lighting that reduces glare and the amount of strain needed to clearly see your screen is a big plus. 

We humans weren’t built to look at a screen for eight hours a day, so it’s important to give your eyes a break every now and then. A handy tip that a lot of people swear by is the 20/20/20 rule. Every 20 minutes, try to look at something 20 feet away for 20 seconds. It’ll give your eyes a little respite from the harsh glow, helping them to defocus and relax a little. Crafty little exercises like this can help to prevent eye fatigue and blurry vision, plus it protects your longer distance vision. 

Of course, your overall lifestyle can make a huge difference to your vision. Fruits and veggies contain all the lovely vitamins and minerals needed to keep your peepers in tip-top condition. If your diet’s not overly green, there are plenty of vision-supporting supplements out there with all the vitamin A, C and Omega-3 you could ever wish for. 

 

Bear in mind that we’re not nutritionists or eye specialists, so get a professional’s input as well. Make sure to schedule regular check-ups with an optician so that your eyes remain healthy and comfortable whilst working at your desk. 

For clear, bespoke and actionable advice that will help you to grow your business in a sustainable way, call our Northern office on 01482 235575, our London office on 0207 885 0605 or fill in the contact form below.