Tema-Ghana, Dec. 10, MNN – The Ghana Optometric Association (GOA) has revealed that people who use electronic devices including mobile phones and computers for a prolonged period may encounter irritation as a result of light emitted from the devices.
“The characteristics of computer viewing may make many individuals susceptible to the development of vision-related symptoms,” Dr. Kwame Oben-Nyarko GOA Public Relations Officer stated at the Ghana News Agency Tema Regional Office and Ghana Optometric Association “GNA-GOA My Eyes! My Vision! campaign platform in Tema.
The fortnight initiative is a collaborative public education advocacy campaign to promote the need for people to access eye care and also to draw attention to vision health.
The GNA-GOA: My Eyes! My Vision! The initiative also seeks to challenge the public and policymakers to focus on vision as a health issue, which forms a critical component of mankind’s well-being but is often neglected.
Dr. Oben-Nyarko, GOA Public Relations Officer said studies show that blue light can damage light-sensitive cells in the retina, “this can lead to early age-related macular degeneration, which can lead to loss of eyesight”.
He explained that the problem starts from the fact that “if you don’t blink enough, your eyes dry out, causing blurry vision and discomfort. The other main problem from staring at a screen too long is eyestrain, stressing that the possible cause of this is the brightness or glare that comes from the electronic screen.
Dr. Oben-Nyarko who is also the Chief Executive Officer of Third Eye and Vision Center spoke on Computer Vision Syndrome (CVS) and explained that the prolonged use of a computer or any light-emitting devices having the eye glare the emitting lights and not having to blink the eye intermittently can cause burning in the eye putting stress on it.
“If you work in front of a computer all day or spend a lot of time watching television and playing video games, you might have noticed your eyesight getting a bit blurry.
“This is due to a condition known as CVS, a group of eye and vision-related issues that are the result of too much screen time,” he said.
He also noted that poor arrangement of the room which allowed sunrays to reflect on the computer screens can cause harm to the eye, “Eye dryness, eyestrain, headache, blurred vision and neck pain were dangers one could encounter under such, circumstances”.
Dr. Oben-Nyarko stressed that constant exposure to blue light over time could damage retinal cells and cause vision problems such as age-related macular degeneration.
“It can also contribute to cataracts, eye cancer, and growths on the clear covering over the white part of the eye,” he said.
He advised that people visit the medical centers for regular check-ups to decrease the number of glaucoma cases and save hospital bill in future.
Dr. Oben-Nyarko called on the public to help keep their eyes healthy through a healthy and balanced diet, maintain a healthy weight, undertake regular exercise, wear protective eyes when necessary, study family medical history and be circumspect about other risk factors.
