Im a vision expert this quick, easy exercise can relieve screen-related eye strain
We live in an increasingly screen-filled world, and while most Americans report serious screen fatigue, our modern work and lifestyle habits make bathing in blue light nearly impossible to avoid.In a particularly bleak statistic, researchers surmise the average U.S.
adult will spend the equivalent of 44 years of their life staring at screens.A common outcome of all that screen time? Eye strain.A poll previously revealed that seven out of 10 adults experience screen-related eye strain.
Concerningly, four in 10 rarely remember to regularly rest their eyes, while 20% never take a break.Board-certified optometrist Bryce Appelbaum, O.D., FCOVD, tells health site Mind Body Green that a simple hack can help alleviate the ache.“We should be employing the 20-20-20 rule.
Which means taking a break every 20 minutes, looking at something at least 20 feet away, for at least 20 seconds,” Applebaum advises.Applebaum says the 20-20-20 rule should be employed whenever one spends a prolonged time reading, writing or watching things up close or far away.That kind of focus equates to serious exercise for the eyes — which are, after all, muscles.
Applebaum makes the analogy between a fist and the eyes.“If you were to squeeze your hand in a fist, the muscles in your hand would begin to get tired and weaken after a few seconds,” he says.“However, if you open your fist and close it again, you can maintain the fist for much longer.”The same logic holds for the muscles in the eye.
As our eyes encounter screens, our pupils constrict or get smaller, a process called miosis.“That’s the equivalent of squeezing a fist,” Applebaum maintains.And just as it is crucial to release clenched fists, so too is it necessary to unclench the eye.
To try the trick for yourself, begin with an easy-to-track start time; Applebaum suggests the bottom of the hour.“Then every 20 minutes, you’ll know it’s time for a quick break.If you want, a timer can help with consistency as well...