March Is Workplace Eye Wellness Month - Bella Eye Care Optometry

When we think of eye safety, we tend to think of those who work in factories or in shops where flying debris is a constant hazard. Eye safety and wellness goes far beyond the tragedy of flying debris. Most of us, especially in the Bay Area work with computers for all or most of our day. The blue light emanating from your desktop monitor, your tablet, your smartphone, even the fluorescent lights that illuminate most offices all contribute blue light which research is showing is bad for us. Too much blue light exposer can lead to things like:

Digital eyestrain – Fatigue, dry eyes, bad lighting, or how one sits in front of the computer can cause eyestrain. Symptoms of eyestrain include sore or irritated eyes and difficulty focusing.

Retina damage – Studies suggest that continued exposure to blue light over time could lead to damaged retinal cells. This can cause vision problems such as age-related macular degeneration or cataract.

According to a recent report from The Vision Council, “Blue Light Exposure and Digital Eye Strain,” 87 percent of survey respondents use digital devices more than two hours per day and over 52 percent regularly use two digital devices simultaneously.

To help prevent an eye injury at work, 

• Know the eye safety dangers at work-complete an eye hazard assessment
• Eliminate hazards before starting work. Use machine guarding, work screens, or other engineering controls)
• Use proper eye protection such as non-prescription and prescription safety glasses, goggles, face shields, welding helmets, or full-face respirators.

Most importantly, come see us at Bella Eye Care Optometry. We can conduct a thorough eye exam to see if blue light is affecting your vision and suggest lens and treatments that can help reduce the effects of blue light on your eyes at work.