Remote Working Brings on Eye Strain

Not going into the office has quite a few perks. The commute from bedroom to the home office is pretty quick, the coffee is better and you can put in a load of laundry while you reboot the new software. Working remotely can also bring on eye strain.

Working remotely means you're doing more "near" work where you spend longer times staring at a computer screen than you did at your office. Dr. Katherine Johns of Eye Specialists of Texas says it can bring on some problems. Concentrating solely on your computer screen and not co-workers' actual faces presents challenges. Dr. Katherine Johns with Eye Specialists of Texas says dry eyes is one of them. "When you sit down at the computer for a long time, things might seem clear at first, but if you're staring and not blinking, you tears will begin to evaporate. That's when your vision will get blurry."

"Your eyes are feeling tired, sore and strained. and even getting a headache. You are doing a lot of 'near work' now at your computer that you're not used to doing." Dr. Johns says your concentration is solely focused to the screen, "It could be damaging - but more in the short term. Not where you will have scars later."

Working from Home

The good news is that simple things like taking a few minute break every hour, using artificial tears and trying to blink more will help. Dr. Johns says these are temporary problems and shouldn't lead to permanent eye damage.

Remember to blink.

photo: Getty

Remote worker with eye strain

Sponsored Content

Sponsored Content