Recent studies have shown that our eyes produce more tears when we look down, as opposed to a straight ahead gaze or upward gaze . Thus, looking down can decrease dryness of the eye.
Your chair should be padded and conform to your body. Most chairs can be supplemented with chiropractic pads that contour to the lower back (lumbar) region. The chair height should be adjusted so that your feet flatly touch the floor. Posture is important, so avoid awkward or unnatural sitting positions while operating your VDT for extended time period.

Glare, or reflections from the monitor's front surface, is a nuisance for computer operators. Glare can be reduced by turning the monitor face away from, or perpendicular to, windows. Glare filters act like polarizes, decreasing light reflected by the monitor surface. Filters are found at most stores specializing in computer products.
Direct, overhead fluorescent lighting is a menace to computer users. Fluorescent lighting is usually uncomfortable at VDT's because of glare. Moreover, some people, especially lightly pigmented individuals, perceive fluorescent lights to flicker out of the corners of their eyes with their peripheral vision. Flicker can lead to headaches, so people who perceive it, function better with fluorescent lights turned off.
The best light is indirect or reflected light. Inverted halogen lamps are an example of indirect lamps.
Wrist discomfort is a common problem, especially with data entry jobs. Wrist pads are available which raise the wrists above the level of the keyboard. Also, try moving only your fingers when you type, leaving your wrists stationary.

If your job involves data entry, the best possible position for your hard copy is above your keyboard and below your monitor. If this is not possible, place it to the side. Try to maintain a stationary head position, while using your eyes to jump from hardcopy to keyboard and monitor. However, as taught in every typing course try not to watch your hands or the screen while typing.

The letter quality of book text and other hard copy are usually high contract characters. Computer text letters are electronically generated and of less contrast than that hard copy text. The edges of computer generated text characters are blended. It is thought that these blended edges and low contract letters contribute to CVS.

The minimum acceptable letter height for your VDT is order to avoid eyestrain is 3 to 3.5 mm in height, while the spacing between characters should be about 1 mm.

As mentioned above, lightly pigmented people perceive flicker easily. This applies not only to fluorescent light but also to the computer monitor itself. If the screen appears to oscillate or jump around, this is flicker. It can be dampened by turning down the screen brightness. If possible, use positive contrast - that is white or yellow characters on a dark screen rather than dark letters on a light screen. However, if you have no problems with flicker, stick to the negative contrast screen – dark colors on light background.

Negative contrast screens with black letters on a white background affords the best situation for focusing (given you don't experience flicker) Avoid red colors on your VDT. Transient color vision problems develop as a result of using colored figures. Afterimages can be present in the complementary color for up to 2 hours after prolonged VDT use. However no actual damage occurs to the eye.

Periodic rest can alleviate CVS. The rule of thumb is 15 minutes of rest for every 2 hours of continuous computer use. However, our recommendation also include the "20/20 Exercise." This means that for every 20 minutes of computer use you should rest for 20 seconds, staring at a distance. This helps to reduce eye strain.

Specially designed computer lenses such as low magnifying lenses or progressive lenses can also help reduce CVS. Tinted lenses may also help reduce problems with glare and flicker. However, no definitive studies are available to determine which colors are the best. Gray or brown graded tints (i.e. tints that are darker on the top of the lens) are best, as these colors do not change color perception. Tints are highly individualized, and are prescribed most on a trial and error basis.

Dry eyes can result from working at VDT's for extended periods. The two main reason are that we blink less per minute while reading or concentrating on text-like material. Also VDT's are often placed in air conditioned rooms and condition air leads to problems with dry eye and can cause problems with people wearing contact lens.
If you feel that you have CVS, you should seek help from an eyecare professional.

If you are experiencing the symptoms described above please call one of our offices to discuss any further questions you may have or to schedule an appointment.