Techno stress right before our eyes

By Ruth Sutton

Computers are now part of our everyday lives, and whether we like it or not, they are here to stay. Love em or hate em, these machines are intended to enhance the quality of our lives through a wide range of packages making us more efficient, enabling us to communicate quickly, giving us access to information and providing us entertainment as well. But is there a health risk attached to using VDUs (visual display units)? 

Mr. Rajapakse stresses that the eye cannot be permanently damaged by overuse of VDUs, but encourages people to recognise the symptoms and take precautions. 

So what are the risks?

Researchers have found that VDU users blink up to two thirds less frequently than they would in normal life. The eyelids of the VDU user tend to stay wider than normal , thus exposing more of the sensitive part of the eye to the air. The eye can also become very tired due to taking in a lot of rapidly changing information while focusing only on the screen and overusing one's short range vision. This can lead to migraines, general mental fatigue and in a very rare case, it has been suggested that VDU use may have been the cause of optically induced epilepsy. 

What can the individual do to protect his eyes?

*An eye examination prior to use is important. Even the smallest visual defect (a common one being that one eye is stronger than the other) can lead to an unbalanced load being taken by the eyes, due to their functioning at different strengths which could cause headaches and fatigue. This can easily be rectified with the correct spectacles.

*Many people place their VDUs at an angle on their desks. This has a similar effect to the problem outlined above. The solution here is simple. Ensure that you are working at the VDU square on, at an equal distance from both eyes. 

*The VDU must be level with your eyes and at a distance of approximately 45 -60 cm. Use an adjustable chair and ensure that it is at the correct height for you, and that it supports your lower back. 

*Keep the screen clean, and invest in a glare guard to lessen the intensity on your eyes.

*Good light is vital to comfortable computer use. If possible, try to look out the window frequently to ensure that your capacity for depth and long range vision is not being compromised, and that your short range vision is not being overused. 

*Give yourself a physical break every hour. Get up and stretch.

Gimhala Perera in the marketing department of East West Information Systems Ltd. agrees that there are physical problems associated with VDU use. He recommends taking breaks and using a glare guard, but acknowledges that "when selling a computer to a company, we can only advise on health and safety."

The other area of concern is computer related stress. Mr. Rajapakse suspects that computer use may be one of the factors in causing stress. He explained that the pathway which carries information from eye to brain has, until this point, been capable of carrying all the information the eye receives and delivering it accurately to the brain where it can be processed adequately. However, in this technology-driven age, we are taking in much larger volumes of information at a faster pace than ever before. The brain's attempts to process and make sense of all this information could be a cause of fatigue, headaches, confusion and ultimately stress, he says. 

He hopes that his work will be continued by other interested professionals in the field. He hopes laws could be passed to ensure that vendors are trained to advise customers. 

Asked if such laws would ever be passed - both in Sri Lanka and around the world, he chuckled slightly, sighed and concluded, "You will have to ask Bill Gates about that one!"

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