5 Common Causes of Eye Strain

How often have you sat in front of a computer or book and noticed that your eyes are sore or that you’re having difficulty focusing? If it’s quite often, you may be suffering from eye strain. Asthenopia, or eye strain, occurs when your eyes become fatigued. While not a long-term, sight-threatening condition, it can cause headaches and light sensitivity, so you should take steps to avoid it. Today, your trusted optometrist from Vienna Eyecare Center breaks down the common causes of eye strain.

What Causes Eye Strain

Nearly any activity involving the eyes can cause eye strain, especially if performed for prolonged periods of time or under adverse conditions. For example, doing the following actions for extended time frames may lead to the condition.

• Reading without resting your eyes
• Using electronic devices like cell phones, tablets or computers
• Being exposed to either extremely bright light (i.e. sunlight or glare) or low-light situations
• Writing
• Being overly tired or stressed

Digital device eye strain even has its own names: digital eye strain or computer vision syndrome (CVS). These devices typically cause eye strain because:

• You tend to blink less, which keeps your eyes less moistened.
• There’s poor contrast between the text and the background screen/image.
• Digital devices have a lot of glare.
• Most people view them close to their eyes, less than the recommended 20 to 26 inches away.

How to Prevent Eye Strain

You can reduce or even prevent eye strain by:

• Preventing glare, i.e. removing overhead lighting above computer screens.
• Taking breaks from what you’re doing.
• Looking away from the computer for at least 20 seconds every 20 minutes.
• Reminding yourself to blink.
• Adding artificial tears to your eyes.

If you’d like to learn more about the causes of eye strain, our eyecare specialists at Vienna Eyecare Center can assist you. For over 30 years, we have been serving the Vienna community with quality eye care services. Call us today at (703) 938-7633, or complete our online form to schedule a visit.