The Dangers of Digital Eye Strain.

The Dangers of Digital Eye Strain.

These days, many of us spend a lot of time in front of our computers or on other devices.  However it has been reported that a woman in China, who was in the habit of spending many hours peering at her smartphone in the dark, eventually suffered a detached retina.

The woman said that she felt that the vision in her right eye seemed as though she was looking through a thick veil for about a week.  She went to see the doctor and said that when he covered her left eye the vision and everything she looked at out of her right eye was distorted.  She said that objects she was looking at, that should be rectangular, actually appeared oval. She was used to playing on her smartphone in the dark usually for about two to three hours every night.

The doctor who was treating the patient whose name was Liu diagnosed a partial retinal detachment and put the condition down to her habitual playing with the smart phone in the dark. The treating ophthalmologist explained that spending long hours staring at bright screen in the dark can cause an over contraction of the ciliary muscle and that in turn will affect its ability to accommodate the changes in the lens when the eye tries to view objects at varying distances.

Retinal detachment is a serious condition and can lead to blindness.  Ophthalmologists are reporting that they are seeing more and more patients who are suffering from the condition because of the use of both handsets and computers where they have been staring at the screens for long periods of time.

Another patient in China spent ten hours every day running a shop that he had on a well known online marketplace.  The excessive time that he spent monitoring his on line shop eventually cost him the vision of his right eye, in November last year, doctors reported.

China is a country increasingly obsessed with staying wired, but here as well as in the West health professionals have long warned that excessive use of these devices can lead to very serious consequences.   

Some very useful safety tips are offered by www.thevisioncouncil.org Lens technology is advancing to meet the concerns of a digital world and to help reduce digital eyestrain. Computer glasses are a great solution to reduce or eliminate digital eyestrain. Other “eye-gonomic” actions can also help lessen the incidence of fatigue. The Vision council’s medical advisory board offers these tips for safer screen viewing:

·      Adjust the brightness of your device.

·      Consider changing your background colour from bright white to cool grey.

·      Attach a glare reduction filter to your computer screen.

·      Frequently dust and wipe digital screens to help reduce glare.

·      Adjust your screen so that it is directly in front of your face and slightly below eye level. Do not tilt a computer monitor.

·      Position yourself or your device so there is sufficient distance between your eyes and the screen.

·      Lessen the amount of overhead and surrounding light that is competing with your device’s screen.

·      When using a computer, first sit in your chair and extend your arm.  Your palm should rest comfortably on the monitor.

·      Keep handheld devices a safe distance from your eyes and just below eye level.

·      Increase text size.

·      Remind yourself to blink more often.  This is important as staring at a digital screen can affect the number of times you blink, causing your eyes to dry.

·      Every 20 minutes, take a 20-second break and look at something 20 feet away.

·      Parents should limit the amount of screen time for children, and reduce their screen time in front of children so as to set healthy standards in the home.

Remember:  Blink. Breathe. Break

Please note that all information and content on UK Health Radio and this blog is provided by the authors, producers and companies themselves and are only intended as additional information to your general knowledge and not as a substitute for professional medical advice or treatment. So please do not delay or disregard any medical advice received due to information gathered on UK Health Radio.

UK Health Radio – the health radio station for the United Kingdom, Europe and beyond at www.ukhealthradio.com – is kindly sponsored by www.1-stop-health-shop.com

Amanda Thomas

UK Health Radio

Quitting Smoking

Quitting Smoking

Next month will feature the British Heart Foundation’s annual no smoking day. This follows on nicely from the item last week that looked at the move to ban smoking in cars when children were passengers.  A lot of people find that the efforts they have made to quit smoking have been hijacked by the fact that they have felt a real sense of loss when they have given up the cigarettes that have been part of their lives for so long.  I know I did when I gave up ten years ago.  But giving up smoking doesn’t have to be about losing something – it can be very much about getting something back too.

At the moment a pack of twenty cigarettes averages about eight pounds.  That equates to an extra fifty-six pounds a week for a twenty a day smoker who has given up.  You might also be surprised to learn that as well as life insurance being cheaper for non-smokers; car and home insurance will also be less. 

If the health benefits have failed to persuade you maybe the hard cash gains will. 

For a twenty a day smoker after quitting for just one day, they would have enough to rent a movie or buy some magazines.  In one week they would have enough for a  DVD box set, a beauty treatment, a paintballing day or even a day out at the races.

In one month the smoker who has given up will really be quids in and be able to have a real shopping spree, buy some football tickets to a premier game or even have a day out rally driving.

In three months you are in holiday territory with two weeks away from it all in the sun, some new jewellery, a new laptop or the very latest flat screen TV.

Six months after quitting you will be able to pay for a season ticket to the footie, take the whole family away somewhere nice on holiday or buy a top of the range bike.

After a year you will be really feeling the benefit, as the money you have saved would buy you new luxury leather furniture, a new kitchen, some designer bling or even a car.

Looked at like that it does seem tempting right?  So why don't you start planning for next month now and pick a day to quit.  You will be very glad you did when you are driving that new car off the forecourt next year!  

Please note that all information and content on UK Health Radio and this blog are provided by the authors, producers and companies themselves and is only intended as additional information to your general knowledge.  It is not intended as a substitute for professional medical advice or treatment. Please do not delay or disregard any medical advice received due to information gathered on UK Health Radio.

UK Health Radio – the health radio station for the United Kingdom, Europe and beyond at www.ukhealthradio.com – is kindly sponsored by www.1-stop-health-shop.com

Amanda Thomas

UK Health Radio

Banning Smoking in Cars with Children Present

Banning Smoking in Cars with Children Present

It is perhaps no surprise that more than seven hundred doctors and other health experts have put their names to a letter that urges MPs to get behind an England wide ban on smoking in cars, in which children are travelling.   The matter is before Parliament this week for a vote.

The signatories to the letter that was published in the British Medical Journal say that this move is necessary "to protect the well-being of children now and in the future".  Those who have added their support to the ban include doctors, surgeons, nurses and other paramedical staff working in all areas of the NHS.  In the letter the fact that exposure to second-hand smoke is a "major cause of ill-health in children" and this is particularly so in groups that are more disadvantaged, is highlighted.

Smoking in cars exposes children to "high amounts of tobacco smoke" and there is now agreement that children need to be protected from such wholly avoidable hazards.

In the UK a figure of just over a fifth of adults smoke and of those over a fifth admit that they do smoke when their children are around them.  They may not know that even if the car window is open the smoke can be present in the air for up to two and a half hours.  In that smoke are over four thousand chemicals some of which have been proved to cause cancer.  Chest infections, asthma, ear problems and even cot death are also linked to exposure to cigarette smoke.

The figure of three hundred thousand visits to the GP by children suffering from the effects of second hand cigarette smoke, is only topped by the figure of nine and a half thousand that have to be admitted to hospital as a result of inhaling second hand smoke.

A ban on smoking in cars is currently in effect in some US states such as California, as well as in parts of Canada and Australia. 

It must surely a good idea to save children from breathing in second hand smoke, although how it will be policed is difficult to imagine.  It will be interesting to see how the vote goes.

UK Health Radio – the health radio station for the United Kingdom, Europe and beyond at www.ukhealthradio.com – is kindly sponsored by www.1-stop-health-shop.com

Amanda Thomas

UK Health Radio

A Tsunami Of Cancer Heading Our Way

A Tsunami Of Cancer Heading Our Way

Alarming news this week about a predicted tsunami of cancer heading our way.  The reasons given are to do with lifestyle and being overweight, as well as environmental issues.  It seems that the so called ‘baby boomer’ generation fear most dying from cancer, or losing their memory from Alzheimer's as they age but should really be worrying about their growing waist lines, as the generation's obesity problem can cause serious health risks and take a toll on healthcare systems in the not-too-distant future.

Part of the problem is no surprise and it is a sedentary lifestyle. Most adults are advised to take vigorous exercise for 2 1/2 hours every week. We know that this can be achieved by doing simple activities four to five times a week like taking a brisk walk, signing up to a dance class, or other more or less vigorous activities.

However surveys show that the baby boomers on average only exercise enough to raise their heart rates around once every week, if that. A confessed thirty seven per cent don't strength-train at all and effectively miss out on a crucial activity that fights the muscle loss that comes as we age. This generation says that it prefers to walk. The problem is:  they do not walk enough.

Baby boomer's health risks from obesity include an increased risk for arthritis, heart disease, diabetes, and high blood pressure, and undoubtedly contribute to the surge of treatment required once the boomers reach around 65 years of age.

A handy measure is the advice to keep your waist half, or less, than your height. For example: a woman who is 5-foot, 4-inches (which is 64-inches) should have a waist measurement of no more than 32-inches at the navel.

The oncoming tsunami of cancer doesn't have to include you, if you choose an active lifestyle. 

Please note that all information and content on UK Health Radio and this blog are provided by the authors, producers and companies themselves and is only intended as additional information to your general knowledge and is not a substitute for professional medical advice or treatment. Please do not delay or disregard any medical advice received due to information gathered on UK Health Radio.

UK Health Radio – the health radio station for the United Kingdom, Europe and beyond at www.ukhealthradio.com – is kindly sponsored by www.1-stop-health-shop.com

Amanda Thomas

UK HEALTH RADIO