Eight Bad Eye Habits and How to Prevent Them

WASHINGTON — Walk down any street in Washington, D.C., and you’ll see historic buildings, unique homes, people from around the world, parks, nature, restaurants from all cultures and more. You can thank your healthy eyes for allowing you to take in the sights. 

Despite the beauty around us, we spend hours daily looking at our phones, computers and television screens. It feels inevitable — we have to work and keep up. Here, we’ll give you tips for preventing eye strain in our digital world. Plus, learn about other unconscious habits and how to avoid them for long-lasting eye health.

Excessive Screen Time

Screen time increased during the pandemic, and many maintain that high level today.

The American Optometric Association states that excessive screen time can lead to digital eye strain, which may cause discomfort and itchy, red, watery or dry eyes. It can lead to blurred vision, sensitivity to light and trouble keeping your eyes open.

Prevention Tips

Digital eye strain can occur after two straight hours of screen time. It may be caused by reduced blinking, leading to dryness. The AOA recommends less than four hours of screen time daily. 

If you can’t cut it down that far, try the 20-20-20 rule. After 20 minutes of looking at your screen, look at something 20 feet away for 20 seconds. 

Avoid looking at screens in the dark, and keep your computer 20 inches from your eyes while you work. Try to blink more to decrease dryness.

Rubbing Your Eyes

The desire to rub your eyes may arise from allergies, dry eyes, irritation, fatigue or emotional stress. According to multiple studies, rubbing your eyes can increase your risk of keratoconus — a condition where your cornea becomes thin and damaged. Keratoconus can lead to worse eye conditions like impaired vision.

Rubbing your eyes also transports bacteria from your hands and can cause infections.

Prevention Tips

See your eye doctor to determine the cause of your impulse to rub your eyes. If it’s dryness, allergies or another physical reason, prescribed eye drops may help address the root cause. Consulting with a therapist or mental health professional may help if your eye rubbing is psychological.

Smoking

It is well-known that smoking is bad for your overall health, but it can also directly impact your eyes. The National Eye Institute states that smoking can harm your optic nerve and increase your risk of cataracts, glaucoma and macular degeneration. Even short-term smoking can cause ocular inflammation.

Prevention Tips

Smoking cessation is challenging but will improve your health and prevent ocular and other diseases. Check out smokefree.gov for resources to help you quit smoking.

Improper Contact Lens Hygiene

If you wear contact lenses, it’s crucial to keep them clean. Improperly disinfecting and storing your contacts can lead to eye infections. Sleeping, swimming and showering with contacts can also damage them.

Prevention Tips

Always wash your hands before putting in or taking out your contacts. Disinfect them with a contact solution. The NEI recommends replacing your contact case every three months. Keep them away from water, which can transport bacteria. Follow your eye doctor’s instructions on how often to dispose of your contacts. 

Skipping Sunglasses

Sunglasses aren’t just fashionable; they’re healthy. Overexposure to UV rays from the sun acutely can cause photokeratitis — an eye sunburn. Long-term UV exposure can increase your risk of eye damage, cataracts, macular degeneration, cornea disorders and eye cancer.

Prevention Tips

The AOA recommends wearing sunglasses that block 99% to 100% of UV-A and UV-B rays — even on cloudy days.

Skipping the Eye Doctor 

Don’t skip the eye doctor. The NEI states that regular dilated exams are the only way to catch eye diseases early since they don’t always present symptoms. 

Prevention Tips

Ask your doctor how frequently you should get checkups, schedule them in advance and don’t miss them. 

Neglecting Exercise and Nutrition

Exercising regularly and eating a healthy diet helps prevent chronic health conditions that affect your eye health, including diabetes, hypertension and high cholesterol. Diabetes and hypertension increase your risk of glaucoma.

Prevention Tips

According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, adults should get 150-300 minutes of cardio exercise and two days of resistance exercise weekly for disease prevention.

Include dark leafy greens (high in vitamin A), salmon and halibut (high in omega-3 fatty acids) and orange vegetables (high in beta carotene) in your diet. All of these nutrients boost your eye health.

Not Getting Enough Sleep

A 2023 review of studies found that insufficient sleep can increase your risk of eye disorders, including glaucoma, cataracts, macular degeneration, myopia and diabetic retinopathy.

Prevention Tips

Try to get seven to nine hours of sleep per night.

Keep Your Eyes Healthy

Maintain your vision and keep your eyes healthy by limiting screen time, avoiding eye rubbing, quitting smoking, keeping your contacts clean, wearing sunglasses and visiting the eye doctor regularly. Exercise regularly, eat healthily and sleep well. Enjoy the view.

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