Blog article

We are 'Zooming', 'Whatsapping',  TVing and using mobiles more and  all of this can give you screen fatigue and digital eye strain when focussing on a  small screen. Digital eye strain contriubutes to deteriorating eye sight and is directly proportional to the duration of digital screen exposure.

Too much screen time can cause:

• Headaches, tiredness, eye strain
• Dry eyes, eye irritation, blurred vision and reduced productivity.

So I have a few tips to manage eye strain:

• The 20:20:20 Rule - Take a 20 sec break every 20 mins to look at a distant item 20 feet away( 6M). This helps the eyes to relax and focus.
• Space your on line meetings so not back to back.
• This idea keys into the previous one - Swap screen time for green time between appointments by taking a quick walk outside, barefoot on the grass or the beach if you are close to one. The act of walking barefoot grounds you and has psychological benefits. Stretch the the body in these breaks too.
• In virtual meetings hide the self view as this gives the brain one less thing to focus on.

Lifestyle improvements

• Eat green leafy vegetables, fruit, yellow and orange veges such as squash, carrots and capsicums which contain high levels of beta- carotene which is converted toi Vitamin A essential for good vision. 
• Use omega 3 fatty acids which can be found in wild caught fish such as salmon, trout and mackeral, walnuts, flaxseeds or fish oil supplements.
• Lutein is a very beneficial anti oxidant that helps protect the eyes from oxidative stress triggered by exposure to digital devices. It is found in: Leafy greens, asparagus, green beans, eggs and dark blue and red berries. 
• Delete refined sugar as excess is linked to many eye diseases.
• Keep hydrated with 2L of water a day.
• Avoid excess alcohol.
• Get plenty of exercise and good sleep. 
• If you are into meditation this helps relax the eyes too.

Herbs for eye health

1. Bilberry - Well known for improving eye sight
2. Eyebright - Used for centuries to treat eye complaints such as irrtitation, inflammation, fatigue, sinusitis and conjunctivitis
3. Ginkgo - Increases blood flow to the head area.
4. Green tea - Full of anti oxidants to help eye disease

So as you can see there is a lot that you can do for your eyes to keep them in good condition for many years to come

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