Health Tips # 1 - Eye care

This month of April, am going to focus completely on Health Tips. April 1 marks the beginning of a new financial year in India, and we hope to start a completely new episode in the lives of many people by getting them to understand that "Health is wealth".

As an eye opener for this brand new topic, the first article today is going to focus purely on Eye care.

Enough bragging, let me get to the topic straight.

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Long hours in front of the Computer ? Read this..

A lot of people experience eye pain, eye redness, excess watering, headache and tiredness for working long hours in front of the computer. Its caused by constant gazing at computer screen kept at a near distance, and decreased blinking.

Remember it is not because of the harmful radiations from the computer (computer does not emit harmful rays or radiations) but because of wrong work habits.

Follow the tips given below:

• Place the computer screen about 2 to 3 feet away from the eyes.
• Stop looking at the screen continuously.
• Take the eyes off the screen every 5 to 10 minutes.
• Every half-an-hour take a break for 1 or 2 minutes.
• Every hour take a 5 minute break by walking around or doing some other work.
• Make a conscious effort to blink more frequently.
• If necessary, use eye drops 3 to 4 times a day to lubricate the eye; however, it is best to consult your ophthalmologist before putting any medicine on the eye.

Exercises for the eyes:

Eyes often get tired due to working on the computers, heavy reading or writing. Regular exercise helps in the blood circulation which than relaxes the eye.

• Sit upright on a chair and look at a far off small object.
• Then hold a pen at level with your eyes and at an arm's length and look at its tip.
• Gradually bring the pen close to your eyes to a point where you feel a mild strain on your eyes. The tip of the pen should remain clear and single in appearance. Hold the pen in this position for about half a minute and then again gradually take it back to an arms length. Hold it here again for about half a minute, and then again bring the pen close to your eyes.

Repeat all the above three steps 10 times.

In the beginning this exercise should be done for 5 to 10 minutes just once a day in the morning at a time when you are fresh and rested.

After one week it should be increased to twice daily and after two weeks thrice a day. Avoid the exercise when you are tired or are having eye pain or headache. Continue the exercise routine for 2 months to build good eye muscle strength.