- With CVS, you might have headaches, light sensitivity, vision problems, and sore or tired eyes.
- Your eyes work harder when you look at screens, and things like glare and poor light don't help.
With remote work and schooling at record highs, Americans spend more time on digital screens than ever before — on average, 17 hours a day.
All that digital time is hard on the eyes, particularly because it can increase your risk of developing a condition called computer vision syndrome (CVS), also known as digital eye strain.
The good news is, CVS is temporary, and you can take steps to reverse it. Here's how to identify the signs of eye strain, reduce your risk, and manage symptoms.
Signs and symptoms
Some of the most common signs of CVS include:
- Headaches
- Eye fatigue or soreness
- Eye redness, dryness, burning, and itching
- Increased sensitivity to light
- Blurred vision
- Intermittent double vision
- Eyes that feel heavy, as if you can't keep them open
These symptoms usually last only a few hours and improve shortly after you take a break from digital screens, according to Dr. Dagny Zhu, a board-certified ophthalmologist and owner of Hyperspeed LASIK.
However, Dr. Luis Rojas, an optometrist at DeNovo Eye and consultant to Johnson & Johnson Vision, says symptoms may persist for longer periods if you already have an underlying eye condition, like astigmatism or eye muscle imbalance.
Why does it happen?
Your eyes have to work harder to focus when you look at a digital screen. The text isn't as sharp as words printed on a page, Zhu says. What's more, digital screens often give off glare, which makes it even more difficult for your eyes to focus.
Plus, while you typically blink around 15 times per minute, you'll only blink about half as often when focusing on a digital screen, Rojas says. Blinking helps keep your eyes moist, so when you blink less, your eyes may become dry and your vision foggy — which can contribute to eye strain.
Because of these factors, you're more prone to CVS if you don't take enough screen breaks, according to Dr. Dora Adamopoulos, an optometrist at Eye2Eye Optometry Corner and medical advisor for The Vision Council.
High screen brightness and looking at screens from too close a distance increase your risk of CVS, according to a 2020 study of undergraduate medical students.
Overly bright screens expose your eyes to more blue light, which can cause eye fatigue. Plus, when you stare at screens up close, you don't blink as much, says Rojas. This puts more demand on the ciliary muscle of the eye, which stays contracted without any rest.
Other factors that can contribute to CVS, according to Rojas:
- Poor lighting, which forces you to squint or strain to see
- Reading on devices with poor contrast between the text and the background
- A dry indoor environment
Who's most likely to experience it?
CVS affects a whopping 90% of computer users who spend more than 3 hours a day in front of their desktop or laptop screens. However, it can also affect people who spend a lot of time using any electronic device, according to Zhu.
Wearing contact lenses can also increase your risk. Zhu says contact lenses often contribute to dry eye, which can exacerbate CVS.
Eyeglasses, however, may help reduce airflow across the surface of your eyes and help prevent moisture loss.
Important: Though it might go without saying, if you need glasses to see clearly, you should definitely wear them when using digital devices to help prevent eye strain.
Zhu also says CVS may be more likely to develop after menopause, due to hormonal changes that cause eye dryness.
According to Dr. Mile Brujic, an optometrist at Premier Vision Group and Scientific Advisory Board Member for EyePromise, other risk factors for CVS include:
- Incorrect prescriptions for eyeglasses or contact lenses
- History of eye disease
- Uncorrected vision issues
- Presbyopia, or age-related farsightedness
- Taking medications that cause dry eye, like certain antihistamines, birth control pills, diuretics, heart medications, and ulcer medications
How to handle it
One of the best ways to avoid digital eye strain, according to optometrists, is to follow the 20/20/20 rule. "This gives the eyes the opportunity to re-calibrate before focusing on the digital screen again," Brujic says.
Quick tip: For every 20 minutes you spend using a computer or other device, you should aim to look at something at least 20 feet away from you for a minimum of 20 seconds.
A 2020 study found this method doesn't just reduce your risk of developing CVS. It can also decrease the severity of symptoms.
A few other tips to lower your risk of CVS and manage existing symptoms:
- Keep your devices at arm's length and slightly below eye level (by 4 to 8 inches).
- Use a humidifier in the same room to keep eyes moist.
- Try to blink more often.
- Avoid direct or overhead lighting on screens. You can do a quick test by switching your screen off and checking whether you notice any light from windows or lamps reflected in your screen. If so, move your screen to minimize this reflected light.
- Match the screen brightness to the level of light in your surroundings.
- Increase the contrast on your screen and enlarge the font.
- Regularly remove dust from your screen, as it can affect the clarity and worsen glare.
Use lubricating eye drops as needed. Opt for preservative-free eye drops, especially if you use them more than four times a day.
Quick tip: Take some time to play with the brightness, contrast, screen background, and font settings on your devices until you find a combination that feels most comfortable for your eyes.
It's also wise to take a proactive approach: Schedule annual eye exams to keep your eyeglass or contact lens prescription up to date and make sure you don't have any unaddressed eye conditions, says Dr. Kristyna Lensky Sipes, an optometrist at Canyon Ranch Optometry.
Best places to buy blue-light blocking computer glasses
Blue light from computers can cause a strain on your eyes after staring at screens for a long time. If you're not in a position to reduce your screen time, blue-light blocking glasses can help.
When to connect with an eye doctor
Making some adjustments — like reducing screen time, taking regular breaks from devices, and changing the brightness and distance of your screens — should help with alleviating CVS.
If you don't see any improvement in your symptoms, though, Brujic recommends reaching out to an eye doctor.
You should also make an appointment for an eye exam if you experience:
- Symptoms that get in the way of your ability to work or function
- Blurred or double vision that doesn't go away after you stop using your devices
- Sudden vision changes
- Symptoms like eye pain, redness, or dryness that don't improve or get worse
Eye doctors can evaluate eye health and vision, make a diagnosis, and provide tailored guidance on how to reduce eye strain and other symptoms. They can also determine if you need to treat an underlying vision problem contributing to CVS.
In some cases, Sipes says your eye doctor may prescribe special tinted glasses for computer use that can help reduce glare and increase contrast for easier reading.
Other treatment options might include medicated eye drops if over-the-counter ones aren't effective, or a vision therapy program to help your eyes work more efficiently when using devices.
Insider's takeaway
Computer vision syndrome, or digital eye strain, is an umbrella term for eye problems caused by using digital devices, especially for long periods of time.
Although CVS doesn't appear to cause any permanent eye damage, symptoms like eye fatigue and dryness can cause discomfort and make it harder to use devices for work or leisure time.
Taking frequent breaks from your screens can help prevent CVS and treat symptoms. It can also help to reduce screen glare and brightness, keep your eyes moist, and adjust your screen angle and text size.
If these measures don't help, a good next step involves making an appointment with your eye doctor.