Preventing eye fatigue

When you work on the screen, you should make sure the text is always easy to read. If it is not, you can change the font size. For instance, choose a size that is easy to read (12 points or more) and select a font that has letters that are adequately spaced out, such as Arial or Times New Roman. These selections will reduce the effort required by your eyes.

Your eyes also tire less if there is a good contrast between the text you are reading and the screen. Dark text (such as black) on a light background (such as white or grey) is easier to read than light text on a dark background. However, there should be no contrast between the screen and its surrounding environment. There is a risk of seeing glare when entering data if your eyes must shift between a white sheet of paper and a dark screen. In addition, combining text colours and screen background colours such as red on blue, yellow on green or yellow on purple is not recommended. Using blue, red or purple text, or background colours of red, yellow and their secondary colours is also not recommended.

Symptoms of fatigue

Eye fatigue symptoms include blurry sight, dry eyes, red eyes, painful irritation of the eyes and headaches. To prevent this discomfort:

• Every 20 minutes look 20 feet away for 20 seconds;
• Vary your tasks during the day;
• Blink regularly.