Not only your back aches after a long day in the office, quite often your eyes also feel stressed. When they burn, itch, water and are reddened, this is referred to as Office Eye Syndrome. Read below to find out what lies behind it and which tips can help you avoid these problems in the future.

Working at a monitor dries out your eyes

Working for hours on end at a PC is part of the daily routine for many people at work. Some will wonder why their eyes always cause problems when at work although their activities – viewed from a purely physical perspective – are not really stressful. But quite the opposite is true: permanently staring at the monitor is unbelievably stressful for your eyes. The frequency of blinking drops when staring at the monitor and the tear film is insufficiently spread across the eye. Add to that dry office air and it all has a severe impact on the cornea.

This may result in burning, itching and foreign body sensation in the eye – typical symptoms of Office Eye Syndrome, as it is known.
 

Not only good for the soul, but also for your eyes: take a break

Actually it is quite simple, but sometimes, when the tasks seem to be mounting up, you forget to do it: a short break, taken regularly, is really good for your eyes. Just a few minutes are enough. The only important thing is that your eyes are no longer looking at the monitor. It is up to you whether you look briefly out of the window, let your gaze wander around the room while on the telephone or simply close your eyelids and then follow an imaginary circle with your eyes. However, you should remember to do so every two hours – this is very important.

Our tip for the forgetful: write yourself a reminder on a sticky label and put it on your monitor. You should not only use your lunch break to have something to eat, you should also go out in the fresh air. A short walk around the block is quite enough to supply your eyes with oxygen. This is both revitalising and relaxing.
 

Make your workstation “eye-friendly”

Use the following tips to avoid Office Eye Syndrome:
 

• Dry air irritates your eyes. Ventilate – preferably every hour or at least three times a day – in order to let fresh air and oxygen in.
• Avoid draughts. Sitting directly in the cool air-flow of the air-conditioning unit is bad for your eyes. Also, discuss with your colleagues whether the air-conditioning really needs to be on all day in summer.
• The distance between your eyes and the monitor should be between 50 and 80 centimetres. That way your eyes can register text, images and graphics without a major effort.
• The distance between your eyes and the monitor should be between 50 and 80 centimetres. That way your eyes can register text, images and graphics without a major effort.
• If possible, make sure you have a flicker-free display. Your monitor should be set up so that it has the highest possible resolution, with a refresh rate of at least 70 hertz.
• Now and then you should think about getting out a cleaning cloth! Dusty keyboards can damage your eyes if the dirt particles get from your hands into your eyes.
   

Lubricating eye drops provide a speedy remedy

In addition, it is advisable to revert to eye drops when required. HYLO-FRESH^® lubricating eye drops bring new freshness to tired and dry eyes. With hyaluronan and eyebright, they replenish the depleted tear film and give lasting lubrication to the stressed surface of the eye. A bottle can easily be stored in a drawer and you have an immediate remedy at hand if you suffer from Office Eye Syndrome.