Can Digital Devices Permanently Damage Your Eyes?

We’re all guilty of spending lots of time staring at a screen. Even if you’re not permanently attached to your cell phone, you’ll likely use a computer, laptop, tablet, or watch the TV regularly.

Screen time creates a very unnatural focus on a single spot for extended periods. This, combined with a dramatic reduction in blinking that naturally occurs, can create temporary vision issues. However, there’s no evidence that using digital devices causes any permanent damage to the delicate eye structure. But… Digital eye strain and the blue light that screens emit do impact us in many ways.

Digital Eye Strain, Long-Term Effects and Eye Health

Before we talk about blue light and eye health, let’s focus on digital eye strain and long-term effects.

While daily screen use is not known to have any link to eye disease, temporary eye strain is very real. Typical symptoms of this include:

• Dry eyes.
• Excessive watering and tearing.
• Redness.
• Itching.
• Headache.
• Blurred vision.

There are many ways you can mitigate these unwanted effects, including looking away from the screen regularly, not sitting too close to the screen, and using lubricating eye drops. 

However, it’s important to know that as screen time has become more prevalent (since the 1970s) incidences of shortsightedness have increased. While this hasn’t been directly linked to digital devices, it’s believed that the trend for children to spend more time on screens than outside playing or undertaking physical activities may be partially responsible.

Whether this is because of the screen time itself, the effects of less physical exertion during formative years, or something else entirely is yet to be determined. Whatever the root reasons, the current advice is that children should have minimal screen time before age two, and then a maximum of an hour a day aged from two to five.

To be honest, we could all take note of this, as the average US adult only takes around 3,000 to 4,000 steps per day. This is nowhere near the level needed for optimal health (9,000 for younger adults and 7,000 for older). While this is talking about physical health, it’s important to remember that the body is a dynamic system. In other words, overall well-being affects every element of health, including our eyes.

Blue Light and Eye Health

In regard to blue light and our eyes, there is currently no quality, peer-reviewed evidence that definitively links damage to the retina and internal structures to excessive blue light. However, there are some studies that have shown a potential link between high-energy blue light, cataracts, and glaucoma. This shouldn’t worry you unduly, as the blue light emitted from screens is minor and nowhere near a high enough energy to give cause for concern.

But… Excessive blue light from screens can have a negative effect on sleep quality. These hours of rest are essential for the body to go through crucial repair processes and cell regeneration. Dry eye is known to be exacerbated by poor sleep and, even though this doesn’t lead to more serious long-term eye conditions, conditions like these can impact quality of life.

The biggest takeaway about digital devices and eye health is that the current understanding is that, while they don’t cause permanent damage or increase the chance of being diagnosed with a serious eye condition, excessive use can cause issues that affect us day-to-day.

The best approach is to moderate screen time. This includes easy steps, such as:

• Not using digital devices for a couple of hours before bed.
• Adopting the 20-20-20 rule (Every 20 minutes look away for 20 seconds and focus on something 20 feet away).
• Wear eyeglasses/contacts if you’ve been prescribed them.
• Ensure your computer screen is at an optimal height (top of the monitor is at or slightly below eye level).
• Use lubricating eye drops.
• Have regular eye exams.

Educating our patients about screen time, vision damage, eye strain, and more is all part and parcel of regular eye checks at the West Boca Eye Center. 

Discover more about our commitment to your best possible vision and book an appointment at https://www.westbocaeyecenter.com/

We’re all guilty of spending lots of time staring at a screen. Even if you’re not permanently attached to your cell phone, you’ll likely use a computer, laptop, tablet, or watch the TV regularly.

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