March is Workplace Eye Health and Safety Month

March has been designated Workplace Eye Health and Safety Month, a time set aside to educate the public on the dangers to eye health and vision that exist in many workplaces. Each month, almost 25,000 Americans must go to the emergency room because of eye injuries. Many of these injuries can be prevented with approved methods of eye protection and advice about eye health at work.

Tame Your Technology

Many people sit at computers for long periods of time, staring at computer screens. This intense focus on the lit computer monitor can cause eyes to become fatigued and can cause significant strain to eye muscles. Dry eyes from lack of blinking, blurriness, double vision, a burning sensation in the eyes, as well as headaches and constant neck or shoulder pain. To prevent damage to eye health from computer use, eye doctors recommend sitting with the computer screen about 30 inches away from your face. Give your eyes a break from looking at the screen every 15 minutes. Actively remember to blink to moisturize the eye surface. Change the position of your computer monitor slightly during the day to prevent muscle fatigue. Experts also recommend taking long, deep breaths as you work, which helps to relax your eye muscles. Your Ashburn eye doctors can fit you with special eyeglasses that filter the blue light emitted from monitors to help protect your vision. 

Always Use Safety Equipment

If you in an environment that poses physical hazards to your eye health, experts recommend using approved eye protection at all times. These environments may include tasks where welding, grinding and other manufacturing or construction processes are involved. In addition, tasks that involve the use of chemicals can also present eye hazards. Any work that involves fragments of materials, the potential for chemical splashes or damage from radiant light should provide goggles or other personal safety equipment to protect the eyes.

How Our Ashburn Optometrist Can Help Protect Your Eyes

Regular visits to your optometrist can help to detect changes in your eyes that could indicate a problem in the early stages that can be treated to avoid larger vision issues. In addition, our optometrist can prescribe special computer glasses that will make working in front of a computer monitor less tiring for your eyes. Our Ashburn optometrist can also recommend ways to protect your eyes from injury while doing daily work tasks. In these ways, you will have a highly trained and experienced partner in protecting your eye health.

Let OptimEyes Be Your Ashburn Optometry Clinic

OptimEyes provides a variety of eye care services to ensure your good vision and eye health. We offer eye exam, eyeglass fitting, contact lens fitting, dry eye syndrome care, as well as cataract and glaucoma care. We can also provide pre- and post- Lasik surgery consultations. Our optometry practice serves the communities of Ashburn, Brambleton, Broadlands, Lansdowne, Sterling and Waxpool. Call OptimEyes at 703-687-4719 for an appointment to discuss how you can protect your eye health everyday.