Computer Reading Glasses
Reading Glasses Built For Digital Eye Strain And Computer Vision Syndrome
Digital Eye Strain
That achy, tired, feeling in your eyes after few hours of looking at a computer screen may be Digital Eye Strain (DES for short, also commonly known as Computer Vision Syndrome). That eye strain, visual problems, blurry vision, and eye irritation may be caused by staring at digital devices for sometimes a minimum of only two hours a day. Whether using a phone, tablet, laptop, or computer screen, there are a range of symptoms that you may experience.
Most common symptoms may include:
Blue Light Readers
How To Choose Your Reading Magnification
Who Needs Reading Glasses?
Presbyopia is an age-related condition – often starting in your 40s – where the eyes gradually lose their ability to focus on nearby objects. It is caused by decreased elasticity and flexibility in the eyes’ lenses. When you find yourself struggling to read smaller text up close or holding your phone at arms length to view the screen, it might be time to consider reading glasses.
Readers typically have the same magnification in both lenses, while doctor-prescribed glasses may have personalized prescriptions in each lens according to your more advanced needs.
When determining the best computer reading glasses power for you, you need to consider the strength (or power) of the reading lens when measured at one meter. Felix Gray readers currently come in +0.5, +1.0, +1.5, +2.0, and +2.5 powers. The higher the number, the more powerful the magnification in the lenses!
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Discomfort From Blue Light
People may experience Computer Vision Syndrome and Digital Eye Strain symptoms differently – feeling every type of discomfort, or only one – and some may be more prone to it than others. For instance, some may feel that their eyes are incredibly exhausted at the end of the day where to others their eyes only bother them slightly.
There are two main culprits: prolonged exposure to Blue Light and glare. Blue Light is high energy light that digital devices and LED lights emit. The short wavelength of Blue Light, is inversely correlated to energy level (meaning the shorter the wavelength, the higher the energy). This high energy light entering the eye can stress the eye muscles and cause visual discomfort. Blue Light’s nickname is HEV light (high-energy visible light) for a reason!
In addition, Blue Light can suppress our melatonin secretion. Melatonin is the sleep hormone that helps maintains our body’s circadian rhythm (which is our body’s internal, 24-hour clock that regulates our sleep-wake-cycle).
Because prolonged exposure to Blue Light suppresses this sleep hormone, all of that night-time phone-, laptop-, and TV-use could trick your mind into thinking it should still be alert and awake, making it harder to fall and stay asleep. There are also current studies in animal and stem cell models that show a potential positive correlation between overexposure to Blue Light and retina damage; this appears similar to age-related macular degeneration.
Think of how UV light is known to damage our skin and cornea, which is why we wear sunblock and sunglasses to protect ourselves. With the negative effects of UV overexposure in mind, prolonged exposure to Blue Light and the potential negative effects that may accompany it aren’t entirely surprising, are they?
Glare, the second culprit of Computer Vision Syndrome and Digital Eye Strain, is unnecessary feedback that enters the eye. This, in turn, may stress the ciliary muscle in the eye and could cause issues like dry, strained, irritated eyes and headaches. We don’t just experience glare from our screens, though. Some people may be particularly sensitive to glare from oncoming car lights while driving at night, for example. That’s where our anti-glare (anti-reflective / AR) coating comes into play. Regardless of the magnification you choose, all of our lenses come with a double sided AR coating that blocks 99% of glare both from our screens and the world around us.
Readers
Readers may be for you if you experience Digital Eye Strain alongside the need for magnification when looking at objects at an up-close (12-14 inches) distance.
Are you most comfortable reading or viewing material at an arm’s length, or more (think: 12-14 inches)? When you have an extra hard time focusing while viewing your screen (or any object in detail) at a close distance, or objects closer than 12-14 inches appear blurry, then magnification glasses may be for you. At Felix Gray, we offer reading glasses for computer use with +0.5, +1.0, +1.5, +2.0, +2.5, +3.0 and +3.5 magnified lenses. This magnification helps you more clearly see objects that are 12-14 inches away (think: screens, phones, books, newspapers, laptops, etc.) if they were otherwise out of focus or cause further eye strain. The higher the reader power, the more magnified the lenses. While we offer reading glasses for computer use, they’re still great to use when reading in general (even when it’s not on a screen!).
Readers are a “one-size-fits-all” solution to farsighted related vision issues. This is not to be confused with farsightedness, academically known as Hyperopia. Rather, the need for designer reading glasses or normal reading glasses is often attributed to age and is formally called Presbyopia. Presbyopia is an age-related condition where your eyes’ lenses become less flexible as your eyes age, meaning that your eyes’ ability to focus on up-close details decreases naturally with age. Readers (andcomputer readers) are a low-maintenance solution to blurry vision and difficulty in focusing beyond any symptoms experienced as a result of Computer Vision Syndrome (also known as Digital Eye Strain).
With reader glasses, both lenses have the same magnification power, and the location of the optical center of the lenses is not customized per person. With prescription glasses that have personalized scripts and that you receive from a doctor, each lenses’ power and optical center may be different according to your unique needs (for example, someone that needs a doctor’s prescription for glasses may need a stronger magnification for one eye than the other). When you have a doctor-prescribed pair of glasses, the optical center of each lens is unique to your eye and matches the optical center of your eyeball, allowing you to best focus on an object.
After trying our Blue Light filtering, glare-blocking readers, if you still experience headaches, strained eyes, and potentially even nausea, you may need a stronger or more personalized prescription. If you experience these symptoms, we suggest visiting an eye doctor for a more customized reading glasses prescription.
