Ergonomic Tips (05/01)
Computer Glasses
by John R. Chait D.C., drchait@home.com
Member of the Sarasota Personal Computer Users Group, Inc.
Today it is almost unavoidable to spend considerable time looking at a computer screen. Not only do we use the computer for both work and play, but, with the development of the Internet, we are using PC's for nearly all aspects of our life.
Viewing a computer screen is a visually challenging task that requires good functioning of the eyes. It also requires good acuteness of vision, focus of the eyes on the screen and reference materials, and good eye movement and coordination. If you're like many PC users, you may need a pair of glasses for your computer work that is different from your normal glasses, either with a different prescription or a different lens design.
Or, you might need computer glasses for a vision disorder that would not otherwise require correction if you weren't performing a demanding visual job like using the PC.
Bifocals1 or progressive addition lenses2, usually prescribed for presbyopia, don't work well for computer work. The best solution for the presbyopic computer user is a lens that is specifically designed for the ergonomics of the computer workstation. Special computer glasses3 are designed to accommodate the unique viewing distances and angles at a computer; they work for presbyopic computer users and can also work for others who need lenses for their computer. These lenses also work well for common office work.
Here are some Website links where you can find computer glasses for purchase.
www.soothers.com/Welcome.html
www.prio.com
www.dinapoliopt.com/computer_glasses.html
Eye Care
Because we computer users don't blink as often as normal, we can endure eye irritation: dry eyes, tearing, uncomfortable contact lenses, blurred vision and so on.
The following steps can help improve the symptoms:
Use artificial tears to re-wet and lubricate your eyes, making sure to follow the doctor or manufacturer's prescription for use.
If you're seated in a draft or near an air vent, try to reduce the flow of air past your eyes.
If possible, repair any low humidity or fumes problems.
Concentrate on blinking whenever you begin to feel symptoms.
Every once in a while (especially when you feel the symptoms), close your eyes and roll them behind your closed eyelids.
Press firmly on your eyelids with the palms of your hands and hold for 10 seconds.
1 Bifocal, having one segment for near vision and one segment for far vision. Bifocals don't make good computer glasses because they correct only near and far vision, not intermediate.
2 Progressive lenses, (also, progressive addition lenses or PALs). Multi-focal lenses whose corrective powers change progressively throughout the lens. A wearer looks through one portion of the lens for distance vision, another for intermediate vision, and a third portion for reading or close work. Each area is blended invisibly into the next, without the lines that traditional bifocals or trifocals have.
3 Computer glasses is a cover term for glasses that are prescribed to improve the eyesight of employees whose work at a computer terminal means that ordinary corrective glasses are not adequate. Computer glasses are an aid/tool in the work place. In other words, glasses that are used in ordinary circumstances, and not only while working at the computer terminal, are not classified as computer glasses. Computer glasses are particularly appropriate for persons who spend a lot of time in front of the computer screen.:
Copyright 2001. This article is from the May 2001 issue of the Sarasota PC Monitor, the official monthly publication of the Sarasota Personal Computer Users Group, Inc., P.O. Box 15889, Sarasota, FL 34277-1889. Permission to reprint is granted only to other non-profit computer user groups, provided proper credit is given to the author and our publication. We would appreciate receiving a copy of the publication the reprint appears in, please send to above address, Attn: Editor. For further information about our group, email: admin@spcug.org/ Web: http://www.spcug.org/
The Sarasota Personal Computer Users Group, Inc. has 1,600+ members and was established in 1982. We are members of the Assoc. of PC User Groups (APCUG), the Florida Assoc. of PC Users Groups, Inc., and we are members of the America Online Ambassador Program.
See http://www.spcug.org for all reviews from the Sarasota PC Monitor, go to the Newsletter Section.