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Our eyes go through a lot of daily abuse whether it’s from the makeup we wear, environmental irritants and toxins, or hours of screen time on the computer. Though we can’t avoid most environmental eye irritants, we can control the products that we use daily on and around our eyes.

Do you find yourself in front of a screen now more than ever? Between working remotely from home, binge watching TV shows and video chatting with our loved ones, our electronic devices seem to be the only way to stay connected these days. Did you know as many as 90% electronic device users experience some form of digital eye strain? The American Optometric Association defines Digital Eye Strain (also called Computer vision syndrome) as a group of eye and vision-related problems that directly result from prolonged computer, tablet, and cell phone use. The symptoms tend to worsen with the amount of digital screen use.

What is blue light? Blue light can be found in anything from fluorescent lighting to LED computer screens, including the cell phones you use every day. When our eyes are exposed to blue light, excitatory signals are sent to the brain. It’s essentially sending the message “Wake up and smell the coffee!”. Daylight consists of non-visible, harmful UV light, and visible “beneficial” light. Blue light is found where these two spectrums meet and is referred to as HEV light or high energy visible light (see image). Blue light has been found to be important for alertness, memory and cognitive function. As we shift to energy saving LED bulbs in the house and increase our screen time in the workplace and at school, eyes are becoming more stimulated than ever before.

Some studies have shown that increasing dietary intake of Omega-3 fatty acids can improve dry eye symptoms as well as reduce inflammation.