As a gamer, it is quite common to experience feelings of physical unease or suffer mild pain after playing favorite video games for long hours. Nevertheless, it is important not to ignore these signs and symptoms too long because some of them can lead to severe health problems.
This is especially crucial for symptoms related to your eyes and vision. According to The American Optometrist Association (AOA), gamers experience various eye-related symptoms due to gaming for more than eight hours a day.
This includes eye strain, headaches, dry eyes, and blurred vision. Concerningly, the AOA finds that there are more than 227 million Americans who consider themselves gamers. Less than half of these (46%) visit a healthcare professional for a yearly comprehensive eye exam.
As a result, many eye and vision-related concerns are left unmanaged and lead to severe vision and health issues later on. Whether you’re a professional gamer, a Twitch streamer, or only play games casually, eye health experts recommend seeing a doctor of optometry at least once a year to stay on top of your vision and eye health. While it’s important to trust professionals, there are also healthy gaming and screen time habits you can and should adopt to boost eye care.
Below, we’ll be sharing four eye care tips for gamers:
Wear blue light glasses
Often called gamer glasses or computer glasses, blue light glasses help filter out blue light emitted from your screens. This applies whether you like to game on a smartphone or tablet, as well as laptops and computer monitors. Blue light is known to negatively affect melatonin production, which explains why looking at screens close to bedtime can make you sleep and wake up more poorly than normal. Fortunately, wearing blue light glasses helps mitigate this effect by shielding your eyes from both UV and blue light. Online retailer Clearly’s range of blue light glasses features comfortable flat frames like the Coach for added comfort when wearing headphones. Blue light glasses are also a great choice for UV protection outdoors if you don’t feel like wearing shades.
Aside from wearing blue light glasses, you should consider using dark mode on your digital devices. Nowadays, most software and apps like Clipchamp provide a dark or night mode for more visual comfort and reduced eye strain. While this may not be an option in games, you can also play with brightness and contrast settings so your games aren’t too bright or straining for your eyes.
Take Frequent Breaks
Another eye health tip for gamers is to take frequent breaks. It can be easy to lose track of time when trying to reach the highest levels and ranks of your favorite games. However, studies have shown that gamers demonstrate much less frequency of blinking than normal computer users. This may be because grinding your games requires utmost focus and concentration. Unfortunately, this lack of blinking can cause dry eyes, irritation, and itchy eyes, which can be an unpleasant mix of discomfort and pain.
Optometrists suggest that you should take breaks between your gaming sessions to give your eyes a chance to rest and blink which helps in putting some moisture back into them. Alternatively, there is something called the 20-20-20 rule; take a 20-second break every 20 minutes by looking at something 20 feet away.
Invest in Ergonomic Furniture
Besides lighting and eye breaks, you should mind the ergonomics of your gaming setup. When gaming or even generally using your computer or devices, having ergonomic gaming furniture such as chairs or desks helps you to be at a perfect viewing distance. This in turn avoids cases whereby you have to squint or crane your neck because one is too close to the screen hence making it hard to see in game objects or enemies for instance on gaming monitors. Some of the best brands on the market include SecretLab and Herman Miller if you’re looking for a high-quality gaming chair.
And really should consider getting one, as a study on the negative physical effects of long-term gaming emphasizes the importance of ergonomic equipment in helping reduce the risk of digital eye strain and digital visual fatigue. The study is also a stark reminder that, in addition to eye health, long gaming hours without breaks can lead to other physical symptoms like wrist and hand pain, back problems, neck pain, and reduced spine mobility.
Stay Hydrated While Gaming
Finally, it’s important to keep yourself hydrated while gaming. This not only helps keep you alert and energized but also helps keep your eyes lubricated through your tears. This is necessary to keep your eyes moist, remove bacteria, and remove dust particles that can get in the eyes while you’re gaming. When you’re dehydrated, the body doesn’t produce enough water to keep your eyes hydrated and moist, leading to dry eyes, red eyes, itchiness, and irritation.
To help keep you hydrated through long gaming sessions, you may want to consider keeping a clear water bottle over ones with solid colors or designs. A clear or translucent bottle can easily indicate how much water you are or aren’t drinking throughout your gaming grind and can be a visual reminder if you keep it close by or on your gaming desk. Alternatively, you can opt for the HidrateSpark smart water bottle that tracks how much water you drink and glows to signal if you haven’t had enough. You can also keep a cup or glass nearby to reinforce your hydration habit and keep your eyes healthy in the long run.