

Ask HN: How's your eyesight? - weavie

Ever since I first discovered computing I&#x27;ve had people tell me that all this staring at screens is going to destroy my eyesight. A quick search seems to indicate that this is actually controversial. Some say staring at screens for too long damages eyesight, while other sites say there is no harm done.<p>Whether it is the screens or not - my eyesight is pretty knackered.<p>Just wondered what other peoples experiences are.<p>Is there a &quot;safe&quot; way to stare at screens for 75% of your waking day? There are some people who claim that there are things you can do to fix your eyes (https:&#x2F;&#x2F;en.wikipedia.org&#x2F;wiki&#x2F;Bates_method) but these claims seem highly debated. Has anyone had any luck with them?
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robodale
I am 42 years old, and have been staring into screens for most of my waking
hours since I was 11 years old (when I got my Commodore 64). I have a slight
astigmatism in my left eye, easily corrected with eyeglasses. I wore 1 contact
for a while, but that was too weird of a feeling having that in one eye.

Other than that I am 20/20.

I suppose I could maybe get a monocle for that astigmatic eye.

Now, having been programming for 31 years...a new question should be asked on
HN: "How's your drinking problem?"

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T-A
Mine has been bad (nearsighted) since childhood and getting steadily worse
ever since. Both my parents were nearsighted too, so in my case genetics
probably played a significant role. But in general, I don't think it can be a
matter of genetics alone; the rise in myopia among the general population has
been too fast for that. Here is what looks like a more plausible explanation:
[http://www.nature.com/news/the-myopia-
boom-1.17120](http://www.nature.com/news/the-myopia-boom-1.17120)

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weavie
Interesting. This does tie in with what Bates called Sunning
([https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bates_method#Sunning](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bates_method#Sunning)).
(The image there make me cringe.)

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scorpioxy
My eyesight was pretty bad even before I started staring at screens. But mine
is due to genetics, probably.

I got a Lasik(actually PRK) procedure a couple of years ago and I am glasses-
free since then with the occasional dry eye.

From what I understood, anything that causes eye strain is not a good thing.
But it's not only screens(reading, bad lighting...). So things like taking
frequent breaks and making sure that your eyes are hydrated will benefit you.
Anything else is highly controversial at this point in time.

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karmajunkie
I thought I was losing mine thanks to computer work, but recently was
diagnosed with keratoconus, which has a genetic link. In addition to being a
contraindication for laser surgery, there's a distinct possibility of corneal
rupture as it gets worse. It causes thinning of the cornea around the edges,
leading to poor vision and astigmatism.

Interestingly, the only real treatment for it is something called collagen
crosslinking, which is basically administration of UV light after the use of
riboflavin on the cornea. This promotes crosslinking between collagen fibers
making up the cornea, strengthening it and arresting the progression.

What's interesting about that is the recent research about the prevalence of
myopia in children and young adults and its connection to lack of exposure to
sunlight. It seems like the computer isn't itself to blame, but time on the
computer probably contributes to time NOT spent outdoors, where the sun's UV
light would naturally do the same as the procedure above.

(This is hardly scientific, just my musings on the subject.)

[Edit: The research i'm referring to is not Bates' research on the subject. I
can't find the link on it at the moment but as I recall it was a study in
China of chinese schoolchildren that played more outdoors vs indoors, or
something to that effect.]

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lemmon7
I have pretty bad floaters in my eyes, and redshift or Flux is essential, and
so is inverting browser colors. I can't recommend highly enough an addon for
Chromium called hacker vision which inverts everything perfectly. Combine with
a dark GTK theme or custom Windows Classic theme (impossible or nearly
impossible to do in Windows 8, afaik, shame on Microsoft) and you can
eliminate most of the horrible light-bulb white screens. Even if I had
perfectly clear vision I'd still use inverted colors due to the decrease in
eye strain.

Eye floaters can be awful and I'd have a hell of a time using a computer
without these things. Unfortunately the only real option to cure them is
getting a vitrectomy in which the vitreous jelly is sucked out of your eye
with a 3-port vitrector (which consists of one cutter/sucker, one saline
injector, and a light for the surgeon) and having the eye replace it naturally
by secreting fluid in its place. Not very fun.

I don't think they were caused by computer usage even though I'm on the
computer almost all day. No real problems with visual acuity.

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Nadya
Strange, I find the exact opposite. I have to use Stylish to redesign any
website that uses a dark theme _precisely_ because of eye strain caused by
reading high contrast backgrounds. White on black emphasizes this more than
white on black when reading lines of text. [0]

[0] [http://www.ironicsans.com/owmyeyes/](http://www.ironicsans.com/owmyeyes/)

~~~
lemmon7
Ideally more software would have an option to use either a light or dark theme
or customizable colors. Dark themes make eye floaters much, much more
manageable, which is my main visual problem and a common complaint from heavy
computer users. Can't speak for anyone else but that's my experience. It's
also important to have good ambient light levels as well, which can affect
things.

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jwdunne
Hrm, I have eyesight issues. They are worse when I use a computer for a length
of time. Retina display improves it.

I have 2 astigmatisms. My left eye is worse than my right. I'm not sure if
computers can change the shape of the eyeball but that is what the problem is.

When light enters my eye, because of irregular shaped eyeballs, the light that
reflects onto the retina is out of sync. It's easier to see things closer to
me because details are more prominent, so the misalignment doesn't have much
of an effect. It's not a problem of lens focus.

The reason computers make it worse and retina display helps is because the
lack of definition adds to the lack of definition caused by the misalignment,
causing terrible headaches and a sore dull ache (the latter does not improve
with glasses).

On top of that, the usual dry eyes are a problem. There's a spray that's come
out in the UK which is handy since it mitigates the aim issue somewhat, though
I have sprayed my forehead whyen being careless.

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miranor
My eyesight is pretty bad too. I don't believe the computers are a direct
culprit, but they might be indirectly and partially responsible. Staring to
the screen usually causes nothing more than eye strain, which may indeed
result in vision problems, but those are reversible - sufficient rest,
frequent brakes, some exercises, and it should be back to normal. However, as
it turns out, I have a rare genetic condition which makes my eyes unusually
weak and incapable of repairing damage. The combination of staring at the
screen combined with horrible air conditioners in the office caused my eyes to
dry out and burn like hell, which in turn caused massive death of cells that
couldn't repair themselves due to the above deficiency, damaging my eyesight.
Hope that clarifies things a bit.

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denniskubes
One of the things you can do is get a pair of yellow tinted glasses. Gundar
makes a specific one for gamers but I prefer the ones from Oakley. They make
staring at computer screens for long periods of time easier.

Another thing to be aware of is symptoms of diabetes. Are you are sitting in a
chair in front of a computer for hours a day, years on end? Do you eat sugary
or stachy foods, coke or energy drinks for instance? Do you not get exercise?
Have you gained a lot of weight? Do you have a lot stress in your life
(startups)? Depending on your body type this type of environment can lead to
diabetes. One of the symptoms of that is blurred vision.

* Updated for wording/grammar.

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drakonka
In about 2007-8 I learned that my eyesight was almost bad enough for me to not
be able to legally drive without glasses. I started saving for laser eye
surgery and got LASIK a year or so later. It was one of the best investments
I've made. I stepped outside a few hours later and looked at the trees - I
could see every leaf. It was like seeing the world in HD. Now, years later, my
eyesight is degrading again (to be expected). It's still better than it was,
but I can tell that it's not as great as it was right after surgery. Thinking
about investigating further LASIK correction options.

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andersthue
I read a article that had dug into this and found out that lack of light (sun)
was the cause of bad eyesight in kids in asia.

[http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/health/children/4140371/Spen...](http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/health/children/4140371/Spending-
time-in-sun-can-prevent-children-becoming-short-sighted.html)

So have a brightly lit room and get outside during the day, that should
minimize your risk.

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lsiunsuex
I've asked my eye doctor a bunch of questions (happens to be my ex-
girlfriend's aunt) According to her, eye sight is pretty much genetics. Some
people have great vision, some people, not so much.

I started starring at a screen in 92 but I was fitted for glasses in 91. I've
worn contacts since 98 and 99.99% of the time and my vision has stayed a
pretty consistent -3, -3.25 (in contact lenses) since.

Some stuff I've learned (about contacts):

If you get contacts that last 2 weeks - use new ones in 2 weeks - It sucks -
Accuview (the brand I use) are pretty expensive (something like $300-400 for a
year supply) but old contacts definitely cause eye strain. I generally change
mine every 3-4 weeks.

Focus on something in the distance every once in a while. A benefit of being a
smoker (if there is such a thing) is every couple hours I... go out for a
smoke. Nice 5-10 minute break from starring at the screen.

If you don't have plans after work and go home and get back to work on
freelance or a side project, or whatever - switch to glasses - glasses allow
the eyes to breath and help rehydrate them.

Drink water! Eyes need water like the rest of the body.

Try something like Gunnar Optics maybe?
[http://www.gunnars.com/](http://www.gunnars.com/) I have a pair and wear them
(with contacts) when my eyes are really tired. They help and according to the
eye doctor, anything that can reduce eye strain is good.

Change your contact solution. I was using Renu solution for a long time then
switched to bausch and lomb biotrue and my eyes have felt fresher since.

Wear sunglasses! With a UV filter preferably, but anything helps. People give
me shit cause I wear sunglasses when it's cloudy but when it's cloudy is
actually worse then when it's sunny. The clouds trap UV rays and that kind of
weather can be more harmful to your eyes (and skin) then when it's sunny out.

If they continue to bother you, have your doctor re-test your eyes or put you
in a different contact / lens brand. People are so quick to goto a medical
doctor for problems, but often neglect going to an eye doctor or dentist.
Sucks - most insurances don't cover eye or dental, but it is important to get
those things checked out.

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kohanz
My anecdotal experience is that eyesight is mostly genetic. As a developer and
before that avid gamer, I've stared at screens and tiny text far more than the
average person, yet my eyesight remains perfect (mid 30's). My wife, as a
counter-example, works in healthcare, not a screen person at work or home, but
her eyesight has always been poor. Heck, my brother is a developer too, no
glasses or contacts.

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helen842000
I have been using computers for long periods daily for the last 20 years. It's
only been in the last few years that I've noticed a real difference. I've
found that the problem has been caused by staring at a small iphone screen.
Reading tiny text for a while then switching back to looking around is really
difficult.

I've stopped using my phone for extended browsing and have noticed a reduction
in eye strain.

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Mimu
Staring at a screen does not impact your eyesight negatively. However it
contributes to an eye "tiredness" (non native english speaker here, sorry),
but that's all. This is from a friend of mine who is orthoptist.

I also know by changing glasses recently that they have some technology they
put in the lens to reduce this tiredness. At least they sell it, I have no
idea if it's a real thing.

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Lancey
I've used computers most of my life. Other than my eyes being very sensitive
(applying eyeshadow causes me to tear up), my vision is better than 20/20\.
Honestly, computers have done way more damage to my posture than my eyesight.

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bemmu
There is a thing you can do, get Lasik/Lasek. It is a bit hardcore for sure to
have someone poking knives and lasers at your eyes, but it was completely
painless and one of the best decisions I've ever made.

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hh999
Mines pretty knackered too and it's definetly due to staring at screens in the
night in dark. I'd love to know if there are methods to improve eyesight or
eye health.

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Ahgu9eSe
There is this tool : [http://jonls.dk/redshift/](http://jonls.dk/redshift/)
that adjusts the color temperature of your screen at night so it feels less
aggressive.

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kleer001
Nearly 40, staring at screens since I was 7 (a fleet of Apple II machines in
2nd grade). Vision is still better than average. 20/15

Why? Genetics probably.

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orkoden
My eyesight has always been excellent and still is at age 34. I spent lots of
time in front of computer screens at work and at home.

