1. USE PROPER LIGHTING

In your office you are likely to find several things that can cause eyestrain, including glare on walls and finished surfaces, reflections on the computer screen itself, excessively bright light coming in from outside, and excessively bright light inside.

Eliminate exterior light and reflections by closing drapes or blinds.

When using VDTs, lighting should be about half that used in most offices. Reduce lighting by using fewer light bulbs or florescent tubes, or use lower intensity bulbs and tubes.

2. TAKE FREQUENT BREAKS
Full time VDT users should take a 15-minute break every hour to reduce eyestrain problems according to experts. Less than full time users should also take frequent breaks, after sitting in front of their display for more than a hour. The National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) suggests that for every 2 hours of moderate VDT work, users take a 15 minute break from computer or VDT activity.

This means leaving your workstation and taking the time to interact with others in the office. You might also get non-computer work done—return phone calls, go through your mail, do gentle stretching exercises (see below), focus on things in the distance, etc.

3. EXERCISE EVEN WHEN SITTING
Anyone in a sedentary job, especially those using VDTs, should also stand up, move about, or exercise frequently. NIOSH recommends several sitting, stretching, and joint rotating exercises for VDT users.

4. REFOCUS YOUR EYES
Look away from your computer screen every 10-15 minutes and focus for 5-10 seconds on a distant object outside or down the hallway. This prevents the fixed gaze common among in VDT users. It also lets you blink, which wets your eyes.

5. BLINK MORE OFTEN
When staring at a VDT people blink less frequently—about 5 times less than normal, according to some studies. Tears coating the eye evaporate more rapidly during long non-blinking phases and cause dry eyes. Office buildings may have excessively dry environments that also reduce tearing. In addition, your VDT workstation may create its own "mini-environment" that can pump warm dry air towards you, thereby contributing to any "dry eye" conditions.

6. MODIFY YOUR WORKSTATION
If you need to look back and forth between the printed or written page and the VDT, this can cause eyestrain. Place written pages on a copy stand adjacent to the monitor. Properly light the copy stand. Adjust your workstation and chair to the correct height. Purchase ergonomic furniture to assure proper screen locations and posture.

7. MATCH THE COMPUTER SCREEN TO THE BRIGHTNESS OF THE ENVIRONMENT
Closely match the brightness of the environment with that of the computer screen. The contrast between the background and on-screen characters should be high.

8. MINIMIZE THE GLARE ON THE COMPUTER SCREEN
Use window shades, blinds or drapes to block out excessive sunlight, or install an anti-glare screen. Also reduce the internal ambient light. For conditions where outside light cannot be reduced, use a VDT hood to cut glare and reflection.

9. GET FREQUENT EYE EXAMINATIONS
According to the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health, users of VDTs should have periodic eye examinations. How can you tell if you may need an eye examination? If you have frequent headaches, tired, dry or burning eyes, blurred or double vision, eye discomfort for long periods, or if you have increasing difficulty reading small print, then you should consult an eye doctor. Some VDT users suffer from such additional symptoms as neck and shoulder pains, and others even experience an increased frequency of accidents.

As your eyes age, you will have more difficulty focusing on smaller print items, such as the classified ad section of the newspaper. This condition is called presbyopia, and it affects nearly everyone in the "over-40" age bracket. Bifocal lenses are a common prescription for this condition. While bifocals are a good solution for printed material, they can cause some computer users discomfort. Wearing bifocals can make you move your head up and down frequently to clearly see the computer screen, causing a visual distortion colorfully referred to as "chicken dance."

Specially prescribed computer glasses are an option for reducing computer related eyestrain. Those prescribed by optometrists, ophthalmologists and opticians are best suited for computer use because the eye physician can simulate your viewing of the VDT screen right in his or her office. This lets the doctor identify your individual "lag of accommodation," and will result in prescribing eyeglasses that help alleviate computer-related eye stress and its symptoms.