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The Doctors Book of Home Remedies: Eyestrain

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Eyestrain

10 Tips to Avoid It

"Around age 40 or 45, your focusing power starts to go and it can lead to eyestrain," says Samuel L. Guillory, M.D., a New York City ophthalmologist and assistant clinical professor at Mount Sinai Medical Center of the City University of New York. "It's a gradual process that happens to everyone."

But you can get eyestrain at any age if what you're staring at all day is a video display terminal (VDT).

If you find your eyes straining to read your birthday cards or a VDT screen, here are some suggestions that might help.

Pay attention to lighting. "It doesn't hurt your eyes to read in dim light, but you can strain them if the light doesn't provide enough contrast," says Dr. Guillory. "Use a soft light that gives contrast, but not glare, when you read. And don't use any lamp that reflects light directly back into your eyes."

Try reading glasses. You can get them from your doctor or even from your drugstore. "If you have good distance vision in both eyes and just have trouble seeing up close, go to your local drugstore and buy the reading glasses they have on display there," says ophthalmologist David Guyton, M.D., a professor at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. "They're sold in all 50 states, cost from $10 to $20, and are impact-resistant, good-quality glasses that will help you."

MEDICAL ALERT

Problems That Need a Doctor

Sometimes the cause of eyestrain is a lot more serious than just passing your fortieth birthday. "Strain can also be caused by eye misalignment, where one eye starts to turn in or out," says David Guyton, M.D. "If that's the case, the problem needs to be treated by an ophthalmologist who can suggest specific exercises, prescribe special prism glasses, or—if necessary—even perform eye muscle surgery to realign the eyes."

All the experts agree that if you have pain in your eye or sensitivity to light, you need to see an ophthalmologist right away.

Pick the right power. You are the best judge of which reading glasses work best for you. "Pick the weakest, or least powerful, ones that will allow you to read at the distance you want," says Dr. Guyton. "If you buy ones that are too powerful, you will see fine up close, but things will be blurred beyond that distance."

Interrupt your work. Save and store what's on your VDT screen every once in a while. "If you use the computer for 6 to 8 hours," says Dr. Guillory, "take a break every 2 to 3 hours. Do some other work, get coffee, go to the bathroom—just take your eyes off the screen for 10 to 15 minutes." Also, consider working from a printout of your screen.

Darken your screen. Those aren't just letters and numbers on your screen. They're also tiny light bulbs that send light directly into your eyes. You need to turn the wattage down, so to speak. "Don't make the letters too bright," advises Dr. Guillory. "Turn the brightness down to a dim level and then adjust the contrast to make up the difference." An added tip: Take a pencil and make a mark on the knob you adjusted. Then make a corresponding mark on the computer. That way you'll just have to realign the marks if somebody changes the setting on your computer when you're not there.

The Alternate Route

Yoga—And Beyond

For Meir Schneider, yoga wasn't only the key to gaining spiritual insight. It also was the key to simply gaining sight. "Yoga helped cure my blindness," claims Schneider, who was born blind. He credits daily yoga exercises for helping bring back his vision, which he says is now 20/60. "And it's still improving."

The techniques Schneider teaches at his Center for Self Healing in San Francisco, California, and in his book Self Healing: My Life and Vision, are influenced by the controversial work done by turn-of-the-century ophthalmologist and eye-exercise proponent Dr. William Bates. "I took the Bates Method and added a bit of my own work to it," says Schneider. While it might be straining science a bit to say it cures blindness, some of his techniques may be helpful in handling eyestrain.

Take a tea break. But don't drink it; put it on your eyes instead. "Take a towel and soak it in eyebright tea," says Schneider. "Lie down and place the warm towel over your closed eyes and leave it there for 10 to 15 minutes. It will make your eyestrain go away." Be very careful not to pour tea into your eyes, though. And also let the tea cool down a bit after the pot boils before you soak the towel in it.

Try a different sort of eye/hand coordination. If you want to help your eyes, Schneider says, you need to lend them a hand. "Take your hands and rub them together until they are warm. Then close your eyes and put your palms over your eye orbits. Don't press on your eyes, just cover them. Breathe deeply and slowly and visualize the color black. Do this for 20 minutes every day."

Put your eyes "on the blink." Your eyes have their own personal masseuse—the eyelids. "Make it a point to consciously blink your eyes 300 times every day and not squint," says Schneider. "Each blink cleanses your eyes, and gives them a tiny little massage." And it's free.

Work in the shade. When it comes to relieving eyestrain, it's best to keep your computer in the dark. "Shade your screen by creating a hood over it," Dr. Guillory suggests. "Go to an art supply store and buy a sheet of heavy black cardboard. Put it on top of your terminal and fold both sides down over it. That will allow you to slide it back and forth. What you've done, essentially, is put your machine in a black box. So now you can turn the brightness down to a very low level."

Shut out the light by shutting your eyes. Our experts say the best way to relieve eyestrain is to rest your eyes. And that's easier than you may think. "You can do it while you're on the phone," says Dr. Guillory. "If you don't need to read or write, just close your eyes while you're talking. Depending on how much time you spend on the phone each day, you may be able to rest your eyes for almost an hour or two daily. People who practice this technique say their eyes really feel better, and it helps rid them of eyestrain."

PANEL OF ADVISERS

Samuel L. Guillory, M.D., is an ophthalmologist and assistant clinical professor of ophthalmology at Mount Sinai Medical Center of the City University of New York in New York City.

David Guyton, M.D., is an ophthalmologist and professor of ophthalmology at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore, Maryland.

Meir Schneider is director of the Center for Self Healing in San Francisco, California. He is author of Self Healing: My Life and Vision.

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