March Madness is here, which means you may be spending more time in front of the television than usual. The popular basketball tournament takes place over the course of three weeks this month. If you want to protect your eyes from digital eye strain, we are offering a few helpful tips to keep in mind throughout March Madness and beyond. Read more below!

What is eye strain?

Digital eye strain has been on the rise in recent decades as our society becomes more reliant on screens and devices to complete our work and schooling. Digital eye strain is a vision disorder that is caused by the prolonged use of digital devices, including television, smartphones, and tablets. When viewing these digital devices for extended periods of time, your eyes have to work harder to process the visual elements from a screen, which can strain them over time. Digital eye strain can result in headaches, blurry vision, neck stiffness, excessive tearing, and more.

How to avoid digital eye strain

As you get ready for the big tournament, keep these helpful tips in mind to reduce digital eye strain:

• Take Breaks: An essential tip to keep in mind during the tournament is to take frequent breaks from watching the screen. While we wouldn’t want to miss an important play, research has shown that giving your eyes a frequent break from staring at a digital screen can help reduce eye strain.

• Adjust Room Lighting: Most March Madness games will go on throughout the day, so you want to ensure that you are adjusting the light in the room you are watching television in to match your surroundings. For example, don’t turn on a bright television screen at night without also lighting the room with a lamp or overhead light.

• Use a Humidifier: As you spend the tournament in front of the television indoors, it may be wise to incorporate a humidifier into the room. Our eyes tend to dry out when we are indoors, leading to itchy or dry eyes. A humidifier can help add more moisture into the air, providing much-needed relief to your eyes.

• Get Your Eyes Checked: If these tips do not help relieve any irritating eye symptoms, like headaches, eyestrain, or dry or itchy eyes, then it’s time to schedule a comprehensive eye exam. An optometrist can help diagnose the problem and treat it accordingly, so you can get back to watching the tournament with focused and healthy eyes!

Visit Eye2Eye Do you want to improve your eye health and reduce digital eye strain? Eye2Eye is here to help. Eye2Eye is Alexandria’s go-to for personalized eyecare and eyewear with an emphasis on specialized services such as myopia, custom contact lenses, and dry eyes. Our experienced staff provides honest and comprehensive eye care services to our community using the latest technology and products. We are committed to caring for Everything Eyes ® and look forward to having you visit our clinics. Schedule your appointment request and our patient coordinator will contact you to schedule your visit Eye2Eye through our easy contact form.