Yes, Your Vision Is Probably Getting Worse—But Here's What You Can Do To Stop It

An eye for an eye. Love at first sight. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. These centuries-old proverbs are powerful reminders that not only do our eyes help us view and understand the world around us, they're fundamental to our most intense human experiences. Small wonder, then, that in a recent study, most people said they would rather forfeit a limb or their memory—even contract a potentially deadly disease—than lose their sight. But our vision is being jeopardized, and, ironically, at our own hands.

The culprit is our addiction to digital devices. Cases of myopia, or nearsightedness—which is linked to sight-stealing conditions like macular degeneration—
are skyrocketing. "At the turn of this century, only 1 to 2 percent of the population had myopia. Now we have rates nearing 50 percent," says Jim Stringham, Ph.D., a neuroscientist at the University of Georgia in Athens who studies ocular health. "And it's primarily environmental," he says, pointing directly to the hours we spend glued to a screen.
For the average woman, that's 10 hours a day. But studies show that just two hours gives you a 90 percent chance of developing computer vision syndrome (CVS)—also called digital eyestrain—which can present as a cluster of issues, including blurry vision and dry eyes (because we blink 66 percent less when we're staring at our screens), as well as upper body pain and headaches. Nearly 61 percent of adults experience CVS. In fact, some experts have gone so far as to call CVS "the new carpal tunnel syndrome"—and it plagues cube dwellers and non-office workers alike.

Part of the damage may come from the high-energy blue light those gadgets emit, which some research suggests can damage cells in the retina (possibly leading to macular degeneration) and interrupt sleep. And clearly, being groggy and irritable is the last thing we need, given how our 24/7 lives already have us so frazzled that we're too drained to take out our contacts at night. That chronic stress can even muck up how well you see, because that old fight-or-flight response causes your eyes to dilate, allowing more light into the eye, which can cause light sensitivity.

The silver lining? Experts say 80 percent of vision problems are curable or avoidable—even without ditching your gadgets. All you need to do is change a few everyday habits around how you use them. Let's take a look at the ways we can save the sense we hold most dear.
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It's quite elementary: When you stare at something at close range for long periods of time, the muscles in your eyes get tired. Exhausted, really. As with any other sore muscle, the discomfort is temporary and will subside when you peel your gaze away. But why let your eyes get that worn out in the first place? Try these quick proactive tweaks from top docs.