A study carried out by researchers at the Ohio State University warns about a condition called „dry eye", which results after the blinking rate drops, a consequence of squinting at a computer screen.
"People tend to squint when they read a book or a computer display, and that squinting makes the blink rate go way down," said James Sheedy, the study's
lead author and a professor of optometry at Ohio State University.
"Blinking rewets the eyes. So if your job requires a lot of reading or other visually intense work, you may be blinking far less than normal, which may cause eye strain and dry eye."
Just a slight amount of squinting reduced blink rates by half, from 15 blinks a minute to 7.5 blinks a minute.
Squinting serves two purposes: It improves eyesight by helping to more clearly define objects that are out of focus. It also cuts down on the brightness from sources of glare. It may be voluntary or involuntary - a person working at a computer may not realize that he/she is squinting.
Being an automated process, the persons who squint are not aware of that, researchers warn.
Dry eye is usually treatable with over-the-counter eye drops. It's rarely a debilitating condition, but it can be irritating and painful.
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