eyelash growth

Q. you say not many patients are aware of computer vision syndrome?

A. Two out of three eye doctors say fewer than 20 percent of their patients are aware of this syndrome.

Q. What’s the difference between using a desktop computer and a Kindle or even a smartphone as far as vision strain is concerned?

A. OK. what happened in the past was you had regular eyeglasses for infinity — distance — and reading, about 16 inches.

Now there is a desktop computer screen, about 24 inches, that may require a separate pair of eyeglasses.

In addition, with a smartphone or the like, I can go to the website of, say, CNN, but it is really small. Some of these screens are best read at 12 inches — usually by a teen or someone under 40.

Q. Oh, come on! only young people can read these small screens?

A. we can prescribe eyeglasses to read these screens, but they still must be held at a 12-inch distance from the eyes.

Q. so you are talking about eyeglasses for distance, 20 or 24 inches for desktop computers, 16 inches to read a book and 12 inches to read a smartphone screen?

A. we can prescribe progressive lenses.

Q. What’s the easiest thing people over 40 can do to avoid these eye problems?

A. To protect your eyes while using your iPads, Kindles and so on, here are a few tips:

— Pay attention to environmental lighting. Reading on digital devices provides its own light but can be difficult to see in a bright light or when outdoors. Adjusting the angle and turning up the screen brightness all the way with the auto-brightness off can help.

Our Health: Computer vision syndrome grows with smartphones