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Presenteeism describes being at work but being unproductive due to stress, overwhelm and/or illness. Harvard Business Review has estimated presenteeism costs the U.S. economy upwards of $150 billion a year Quiet quitting is the ‘latest’ phrase to describe what many have done for decades – which is doing the bare minimum to get by. And this … Continue reading “Presenteeism and Quiet Quitting. What’s the connection?”
In a world where ever-increasing hours are spent on display screens of all shapes and sizes, it seemed odd that they all deliver text in black on a white background. This is why we need to look at colour therapy. Is it bottles of two-toned colours lined up on shelves in a holistic clinic? Perhaps … Continue reading “What on earth does display screen optimisation have to do with colour therapy?”
Working in perfect harmony to ensure your visual wellbeing. Reading about regulations is not everyone’s cup of tea but they have been created for our benefit, and often expand and build on each other. Display Screen Equipment (DSE) regulations do just that. So why do we mention ISO 30071.1 when it doesn’t specifically mention colour … Continue reading “Colour Contrast, reasonable adjustments and ISO 30071.1 (2019)”
Double vision after time on screen? To understand why this happens, we need to look at Binocular vision. Binocular vision occurs when using two eyes with overlapping fields of view, allowing for good depth perception. It allows us to see in 3D which is vital for coordination and hand-eye skills. Depth perception is incredibly … Continue reading “9 FAQ’s re the effects screens have on your eyes.”
(And why it’s essential to understand what it is). When you enter the world of vision, accessibility and colour, you often come across the word ‘overlay’, and indeed there are products called overlays. Initially, you find they are coloured pieces of plastic or coloured glasses that people, generally with Dyslexia, use to help them read. … Continue reading “Why the Display Screen Optimiser is NOT a digital accessibility overlay”
Imagine, if you will, feeling as if an invisible force is slowly squeezing your head. And it’s applying just enough pressure to be annoying but not painful. It’s probably making you feel a bit irritable. Your head feels tight, your eyebrows are scrunched up, your facial muscles are becoming more rigid, and you have that … Continue reading “What does Screen Fatigue feel like?”
“They (smart people) are no more or less likely to suffer the debilitating effects of carrying on regardless of the work/life balance, suffering presenteeism, effectively self-harming, and, at risk of self-medicating their way through the 21st Century with an addiction to display screen devices. Too often they spend longer on-screen than asleep, and then wonder … Continue reading “RISK THROUGH A NEW LENS – why do smart people do dumb things?”
(Yes, and why we prefer scanning over reading may surprise you.) Scanning; we all do it, especially when scrolling through social media or skimming through a post. We visually bounce from word to word to understand the ‘gist’ of what’s being conveyed. Scanning involves the internal recognition of letters and words, and it identifies patterns … Continue reading “Scanning versus reading. Is there a difference?”
If you take anything away from this quick reference guide – let it be these words: “So far as reasonably practicable.” Have them etched in your mind because this is what is being asked of you. DSE regulations have a “reasonably practicable” regulatory solution for most visual repetitive stress injuries. The evolution The regulations … Continue reading “Display Screen Equipment Regulations. Quick-Reference Guide”
Most of us will know about increasing the font size if needed. A few might know about reducing the brightness on a standard, very high contrast white screen. But how many of us are aware of addressing the user operator’s (as in you) “personal, custom and reasonable adjustments for accessibility”? For example, the WCAG Website … Continue reading “What’s missing from your screen?”
Poor colour contrast has a cascade effect that few people are aware of. This is what happens: The colour contrast affects your eyes. Which affects the stamina of your visual systems and brain. Which negatively affects your capacity to sustain concentration levels. Which in turn, affects your levels of cognitive fatigue, efficiency and productivity. … Continue reading “Colour contrast for visual stress and why it’s important to optimise it.”
You can call it what you like; you can diagnose it as whatever you want – but it’s a vast, unacknowledged problem that’s only getting worse. Call it blurred or double vision – or call it by its medical name, AMBLYOPIA in children, and PRESBYOPIA in adults. But it refers to the gradual … Continue reading “Screen Fatigue, Computer Vision Syndrome or Computer Eye Strain. Do we have an invisible pandemic?”
Life is hard right now. In 2021, our stress levels are off the charts; we are exhausted living with unknown unknowns, high levels of anxiety, mistrust, and uncertainty in many areas. We strongly believe that if there is an app that can help alleviate stress, we should use it. Stress causes illness (here’s a handy … Continue reading “9 accessibility apps that make screen use easier for everyone”
Twitter is like marmite – you either love it or hate it. But no matter where your personal opinions are, Twitter has over 300 million active users a month, and last year (2020), it generated over $3.7 billion in revenue. That’s a lot of eyeballs generating a lot of money. So let’s look at the … Continue reading “Twitter – helping or harming your eyesight?”
Poor lighting, flickering lights, too bright, too dim, these all impact our well-being and the company bottom line. But it’s a surprisingly easy thing to fix. What is poor lighting? When we think of poor lighting, we think of dimly lit rooms, even semi-darkness, but a space that’s too bright also qualifies as being poorly … Continue reading “Is your office lighting losing you money?”
Hmm, good question. Years before covid arrived on our shores, the WHO classified a global pandemic of a different kind. One of Display screen users’ 3D vision loss. A few years later, in 2018, regulations were released to help mitigate this 3D vision loss, in the guise of WCAG 2.1 Colour Contrast Validation Standard for … Continue reading “What can I do when ‘don’t do as I do, do as I say’ is dismissed by my children, as clearly, I’m spending as long on screen as they are?”
In 2010 the presenteeism rate was at 26%. By 2018 it had rocketed up to 86%. And for an issue that costs the UK economy at least £15.1 billion a year, only 25% of companies are doing anything proactive to reduce it. It costs companies about £4000.00 per employee, per annum in wages … Continue reading “Presenteeism; is the pc its silent ally?”
Did you know that 13.4 million eye tests took place in 2019? ‘74% of people in the UK either wear corrective eyewear or have had laser eye surgery to help them see better.’ But, in a recent study to find out why many were not having eye tests, the reasons given were: My vision hasn’t changed – 31% COVID – 19% Too expensive – 18% Not having … Continue reading “Do you need an eye test, or is it your computer screen?”
Only this isn’t really a ‘hack’. it’s probably more a preventative, a screen enhancement that behaves like a hack, because after a 15-minute screen reading/scanning test, a download of some software, the hack is installed and up goes your productivity. Sometimes by as much as 20%. 58% of display screen equipment operators, on average, recover … Continue reading “Tired of productivity hacks that don’t work? Try this instead.”
The current understanding is that screen fatigue/computer vision syndrome is temporary. You give your eyes a rest, pop in a few drops, they recover, you carry on. However, we know millions throughout the ages have ruined their eyesight due to what we call ‘working with the near and close up’, which can be interpreted as … Continue reading “Why your digital display screen should come with a safety warning.”
(And no, we are not talking artfully crafted zoom backgrounds or the latest, coolest green screen design, we are talking about something else, entirely.) Years ago, I spent many hours training our outreach “Colour Therapy Practitioners” to administrate Digital Literacy Sessions. This consisted of first popping the trainees on the binocular eye-trace kit, and … Continue reading “Do you have screen envy?”
Blink more often! Yes, you need to consciously think about blinking when you’re working with a digital display screen. Why? Because studies are showing we blink 50% less than we should when online, which means our eyes become drier, and dare we say it – a little grungier than they should? No one … Continue reading “14 Quick and easy steps to prevent computer eye strain.”
Zoom fatigue is NOT screen fatigue but adjusting for zoom fatigue will help with screen fatigue. Yes, we are now fighting digital eye strain on several fronts, but zoom fatigue is more to do with how anxiety-inducing watching other’s faces can be. Stanford University conducted a study and found 4 things that they believe … Continue reading “Zoom fatigue – what is it, and is it the same as Screen fatigue?”
The short answer is yes. But there are reasons behind this, and it doesn’t have to be yes if you understand how they damage your eyes, and what you can do to avoid that damage. But first, let’s talk about blue light because it’s very relevant here. Digital screens emit blue light. According to … Continue reading “Do screens really damage your eyes?”
Colour Contrast 101 – why is it important for eye health? When we refer to colour contrast, we mean the tone, brightness and amount of text, images and background on a webpage or website. Essentially, it’s looking at how easy is it to read regarding the colours, the fonts, and the background colours and images. These … Continue reading “Colour Contrast”
Quora Answer to: How do people know they have bad vision if they’ve never experienced any other form of vision?
by Legin Nyleve…Go to original article
Remove the main fear, disadvantage, anxiety, barrier, handicap, disability to reading for leisure, pleasure and, worst of all, school/work on-screen or otherwise…
Silly me, of course, it has to be this way around when peddling austerity as, for sure, they will want to make money out of running a nudge campaign when few employers are going to actively volunteer for a fundamental change of mind-set or ethos in their management or governance.
Quora Answer to: Does eyesight get affected through the PC? My mother says it was not inherited from her…
How do you know if you are “stereoblind”, someone without perception of depth?
Often there are tell-tale signs from lazy-eye to eye-turns, blurred or double vision for those experiencing eye-strain leading to stress related loss of 3D vision…
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